


Trouble

by Rumbellegem15



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Angst and Fluff and Smut, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-16
Updated: 2017-08-31
Packaged: 2018-11-01 11:34:58
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 18
Words: 62,588
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10920990
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rumbellegem15/pseuds/Rumbellegem15
Summary: Belle French and Cameron Gold meet one night and are instantly attracted to one another. The only problem is she is dating his son Will. They try to deny their feelings and avoid each other but fate throws them together once too often and they give in. Neither of them wants to hurt Will so they keep their love a secret until Belle can end things with him. Unfortunately things don't stay secret for long and Will catches them, what follows is a series of lies, secrets and blackmail. Will Belle and Cameron find their way back to one another or are they destined to remain apart?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first attempt at fan-fiction so please be gentle. It will be a multi chapter story and i'm not sure how often i will be able to update so please bear with me. Hope you enjoy

“Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to celebrate the marriage of William Gold and Belle French” the priest smiled out at the congregation that had assembled to witness the joyous occasion. Except it wasn’t a happy occasion, at least not for the bride anyway. Belle tried to smile but it was forced, a bit like all the smiles she had been putting on for the last couple of months.

Today should’ve been the happiest day of Belle’s life but instead she was marrying a man she hated, she was wearing a dress that she hadn’t picked herself and hardly any of the people staring at her in that moment were people she cared about – except her father and a certain other man who was currently sat in the front row looking about as miserable as she felt.

They knew they shouldn’t have fallen in love, but they had. They had tried to fight it for so long but when it’s meant to be it’s meant to be.  
Belle looked up at the statue behind the priest, the one of Jesus hanging on the cross, and she closed her eyes and silently sent up a prayer to which ever deity was listening, she prayed for a miracle, for someone to step in and stop the wedding. She chanced a glance behind her, just as the man she loved looked up at her, she begged him silently with her eyes to do something. 

Cameron. That was his name, known as Cam to Belle and Belle alone. She had never met anyone like Cameron, never really believed in true love before either. But now she knew what her mother had meant when she had spoken about soul mates.

“Before we go any further” the priest carried on startling Belle back to the present “I must ask if anyone knows of any lawful impediment as to why these two people may not be joined in holy matrimony?”

Belle had to hold in a sob when the room stayed silent.

“That’s always the nail biting part” the old man joked and a few of the guests chuckled along “right now that bit is out of the way-”

“Wait!”

Belle almost sank to the floor in relief when she heard his unmistakable voice.

“Do you have something to say my son?” the priest seemed shocked at the interruption.

Cameron stood from his seat, twisting his cane in his hands - a habit that Belle had come to realize meant he was nervous - he could hear the hushed whispers coming from behind him, and he hesitated when he saw the murderous look in Wills eyes but nothing was going to stop him now.

“Yes I do” Cameron answered and then turned to Will “I’m sorry but I can’t let this wedding go ahead”

“And why is that?” Will said through clenched teeth, his fist clenching at his side.

“Because I love Belle” he held his hand out to the brunette who happily wrapped her small fingers around his “and I truly am sorry Will, but you know as well as I do, she loves me too”

Belle glanced over her shoulder at her father; he was looking at her with what she could only describe as disappointment. It made her heart break that he could look at her like that; he’d never been ashamed of her. 

Whack!

Belle felt her hand disconnect from Cameron’s as Wills fist came flying up and connected with her lovers face “Cameron!” she shrieked thinking he was hurt, he stumbled back but remained on his feet, which considering he only had one good leg was an accomplishment in itself “are you OK?” she asked and stroked his cheek when he had righted himself.

“I’m fine” he rubbed at the spot on his cheek that Will had struck. He knew it wouldn’t bruise, luckily for all his bluster; Will really couldn’t pack a decent punch.

“For now” Will interrupted “but I told you that you would regret this......... papa”

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Six months earlier

Belle was startled awake in the early hours of the morning by a loud ringing. It took her a few moments to shake the fogginess from her brain to register that it was in fact her cell phone ringing on the bedside table. She growled in a very unladylike way and slapped her hand around until she found the annoying device.

“What” she grumbled

“Belle?” a very tentative voice sounded down the speaker.

Belle pulled the phone away from her ear and mentally scolded herself for not checking the caller I.D first; she squinted at the bright light of her screen “Tiny?” she asked when she put the phone back to her ear.

“I’m really sorry to wake you” he sounded so sincere that Belle couldn’t be mad at him. 

“What’s he done now?” Belle sighed; she knew there would only be one reason Tiny would be ringing her at 3am. Tiny – also known as Anton – worked as a bouncer at the only bar in the sleepy little town of Storybrooke, The Rabbit Hole.

“He’s drunk” Tiny explained “the manager said that if he doesn’t get out soon of his own accord then he’ll call the sheriff……. Belle I really don’t want to ring the sheriff and upset Mr Gold, he’s scary” 

Belle had to bite back a smile, Anton’s nickname was an ironic one, he was actually built like the size of a house, so to imagine him being scared of anyone was quite amusing to Belle. She had yet to meet the infamous Mr Gold, even though she had been dating his son Will for about two months, but she had heard plenty about the former police detective turned pawnbroker. It was said that he was a cold man, especially after his wife had left him to raise two small boys on his own. He was also said to be a ruthless businessman, he owned half the real estate in Storybrooke and you never wanted to be late with the rent if you knew what was good for you.

“I’ll come and get him” Belle heaved a sigh and hung up. She sat for a moment and wondered why she put up with Will, but then she remembered why and shook those thoughts from her mind, no use dwelling on those thoughts right now.

She got up out of her bed and stared longingly at the comfy and warm mattress and comforter. She didn’t bother to dress, she had her long pyjama pants and t shirt on and just threw her boots and long red coat over the top, luckily the bar was just a street away. The air was crisp as she stepped out onto the sidewalk, October was officially here. She pulled her coat tighter around her shoulders and headed towards The Rabbit Hole. Tiny was waiting for her at the door when she arrived.

“I really am sorry Belle” Tiny reiterated.

“Don’t worry about it Ant” Belle smiled “it’s Will who will pay for this tomorrow” she added with a wink and walked through the door that Tiny held open for her. The stench of stale beer and sweat attacked Belles senses immediately and it reminded her of why she never visited this dive. The bar man saw her enter as he was cleaning some glasses with what could only be described as a very questionably clean rag, he nodded his head towards a corner booth and Belle rolled her eyes at the sight that met her.  
Will was sprawled out along one of the benches with his feet dangling over the edge snoring..... Loudly.

“Get him out of here before I call the sheriff to take care of him” the barman, Keith, Belle thought his name was yelled at her. He always hit on Belle whenever her friends had dragged her to the bar.

“And how am I supposed to carry him exactly” Belle bit back.

“Don’t care just get on with it” Keith snapped back and went to serve another patron.

Belle grumbled under her breath at the ass hole barman and sighed when she knew she only had one option. She pulled out her cell and dialled a familiar number.

“Do you have any idea what time it is Belle?” she heard a very annoyed and sleepy voice answer.

“I’m sorry Emma, I truly am but I really need to speak to Neal and I don’t have his number” Belle explained and then heard some shuffling and more grumbling, only this time it was a male voice.

“What did my idiot brother do this time?” Neal asked. Neal was Wills older brother, and he was also engaged to one of Belles best friends, Emma Swan.

“He’s passed out drunk in the Hole, I can’t carry him and the manager is going to call the sheriff if I don’t get him out of here. I need your help please” Belle pleaded. Neal cursed his brother.

“Can’t we just let him get arrested?” Neal asked but Belle could already hear him getting out of bed and dressed.

“I wish but from what I’ve heard I don’t think your father would be too pleased” Belle pointed out with a small smile.

“It’s not papa who is getting out of bed at 3.30 in the morning” Neal shot back but Belle could tell he was only teasing her “I’ll be there in a few minutes” he said before hanging up. Belle slid her phone back into her pocket and looked over at Will who hadn’t moved, she stood by his feet that were dangling and shoved at them hoping to wake him enough to move himself outside and they could wait for Neal to help carry him home. No such luck, he just grumbled incoherently and fell back to sleep and snored even louder if that were possible.

She took a seat a waited for Neal, ignoring the glare she was getting from Keith. Neal entered about five minutes later and Belle let out a huge sigh of relief, she had thought Keith was about to come over and start hassling her.

“Thank you for coming Neal” Belle smiled and stood up to greet her boyfriend’s disgruntled brother.

“Don’t worry Belle, it’s this idiot I’m pissed at not you” Neal assured her and then moved closer to his younger sibling “oi get up!” Neal slapped Wills feet hard enough to make him fall off the bench and clatter to the ground.

“What the hell!” Will slurred “fuck off Neal” His voice got louder when he saw whom it was that had woken him.

“I wish I could dickhead” Neal growled back “but you’re about to be arrested and your girlfriend is far too nice to let that happen so here I am” 

“I don’t need your help” Will struggled to his feet and tried to push Neal away but only ended up missing and almost falling back to the ground.

“Will come on just get out the door” Belle ordered and shoved at his shoulder. She’d had enough and wanted her bed as soon as possible.

Will stumbled and Neal shot forward to grab him before he fell again, he was barely able to put one foot in front of the other and Neal had to pretty much carry/drag him out of the door. Belle thanked Tiny when he held the door open for them and followed on behind the two Gold brothers.

A couple of times Neal had to stop and lean Will against a wall or a fence to take a breather, grumbling about how his brother needed to diet and then they would keep going. Luckily it was only about a fifteen minute walk to Wills home. Belle had never been there in the four months she had been dating Will, he’d always met her at Granny’s or very rarely at the bar or sometimes at friends’ houses. She was surprised by the appearance, it looked like something from Victorian times but the thing that surprised Belle the most was the colour.... it was pink!

“It’s salmon” Neal said as he hauled Will up the path. And then chuckled at Belles face, had she said the words out loud “everyone says it’s pink but if you want to stay on papas good side, go with salmon” he told her and she nodded with a smile. She was intrigued to finally meet the infamous Mr Gold, having heard horror stories from everyone she’d ever met.

“Is he really as bad as people say?” Belle had to ask.

“Let me guess, people have told you the stories about the beast, the crocodile, the way he does deals he may as well be called Rumpelstiltskin?” Neal rolled his eyes at the last one. 

“Pretty much” Belle replied.

“He’s a normal guy, yes he’s tough and maybe a bit grumpy from time to time but he’s a great dad to me and Will, he was a great cop before he got shot and now he’s a successful businessman, people just don’t like that he owns their buildings and they have to pay him” Neal informed Belle as he managed to get Will up the last step. Belle stepped around Neal when she saw he was trying to figure out how he was going to ring the bell and keep a hold of Will. He muttered a thank you after Belle had done it for him. A few moments later a light switched on inside and Belle could hear someone walking along the hardwood flooring; she thought it also sounded like a cane tapping as well. The light assaulted her eyes as the door opened and for a moment she couldn’t see the figure that stood there, just a silhouette.

“Bae?” Mr Gold asked sleepily “what’s going on?” 

He’s Scottish! How had Belle never known that? And Bae? Who is Bae?

“Sorry to wake you papa” Neal sighed and heaved Will up who had begun to slip from his grasp. Gold rolled his eyes and shoved the door open wider for Neal to enter with his youngest son without saying a word. He hadn’t noticed Belle stood behind his sons backs and almost shut the door in her face; she managed to stop it before it hit her. Gold was startled by another person’s presence.

“Sorry” Belle smiled shyly. This was not how she had envisioned meeting her boyfriend’s father at all.

“Who are you?” Mr Gold furrowed his brow. He recognized the girl from somewhere but couldn’t place her with his sleep addled brain. 

“Pops this is Belle, Wills girlfriend” Neal introduced them as he hauled Will up the corridor to the bedroom. Luckily Wills bedroom was on the ground floor so Neal didn’t have time get him up a flight of stairs.

“It’s nice to meet you Mr Gold” Belle held out her hand, she was a little unsure of what mood he was in after being woken at 4 in the morning.

“It’s nice to meet you too Belle” Gold took her small hand in his. He ignored the little spark he felt when her skin touched his, putting it down to the early hour and his mind still being in bed, and the fact that it had been a rather long time since any woman had touched him, discounting his soon to be daughter in law of course. Girl was always punching him on the arm!

“Would you like a cup of tea?” Gold asked her. He doubted he would be going back to bed after everyone leaves so may as well get started on the caffeine.

“Yes please” Belle replied, she too doubted she would be going back to bed. She had to be at the library, where she worked as the head librarian, for 9am. He gestured for her to follow him to the kitchen at the back of house just as they heard Neal coming back down the stairs.

“I love him because he’s my brother but I could honestly kill him right now” Neal yawned as he entered the kitchen “you might want to check on him in a but, he’s passed out on his bed but just to be safe” he told his father “you ready to go Belle? I can walk you home”

Belle hesitated before Mr Gold chimed in “I’ve just offered the poor girl a drink, you get yourself off home and I’ll walk Miss French home”

Belles head shot up at the use of her last name, she couldn’t remember telling him that.

“Are you sure papa?” Neal asked.

“I wouldn’t have offered if I wasn’t, go on get out of here” Gold ushered his son out of the door and went back to fixing the tea. The room was silent for a few minutes, neither knowing what to say.

Belle was the one to finally break the silence “how did you know my last name?” 

“a bit of deduction on my part dearie” Mr Gold turned with a cup and saucer in his hand and handed it to Belle “I didn’t know you at first until I heard your accent, and there’s only one other person I know in town that’s Australian so I figured you must be Moe French’s daughter, am I right?”

“Correct” Belle giggled.

“Well it’s nice to meet a fellow immigrant” Gold smiled and all the worries Belle had had about him drifted away. He wasn’t scary at all; he was actually quite funny, and kind. And Belles thoughts also strayed to how good looking he was, he must’ve been young when he had Neal and Will because he couldn’t be older than mid-forties if that. He had slightly long brown hair with hints of grey peeking through and big chocolate eyes. Will was nothing like his father but she could definitely see him in Neal.

Belle sipped on her tea while Mr Gold pottered around the kitchen, both of them remained silent but it wasn’t awkward. When she had drained the cup she stood to put it in the sink.

“Thank you for the tea” she said quietly, not wanting to startle him after being silent for so long “I should be getting home, I doubt I’ll be going back to sleep so I better get started on the caffeine before I have to open the library” she laughed.

Gold smiled “yeah I've been meaning to sort out the back room of the shop, no time like the present, come on I’ll walk you home” 

“Oh you don’t have to do that” Belle tried to wave him off “I only live a five minute walk away”

“I will not take no for an answer Miss French, it’s the middle of the night, you may get eaten by a wolf or something” he joked.

“OK” Belle laughed “but only if you call me Belle”

“OK then…… Belle” he agreed and went to grab his coat from the hall closet. He normally didn’t leave the house without one of his trademark suits adorning his body but he figured he wasn’t really going to bump into anyone at such an early hour and his long black coat covered him well anyway. He had plenty of time to come home and change before heading to the pawn shop. They headed out and turned left towards the town.

“What happened to your leg?” Belle asked and then mentally scolded herself for being nosey “sorry that’s none of my business”

“Its fine” Gold shook his head, he normally hated when people asked him about the cane but with Belle he didn’t seem to mind “I was shot, is the short version of the story”

“Oh my god” Belle was shocked; she was expecting him to say something a bit more mundane than that.

Gold chuckled “it was a drugs bust gone wrong, I got shot in the knee, and then it was desk work for me, I only lasted about a month doing that before I retired and opened the  
shop in town, I couldn’t stand sitting and staring at a computer screen all day”

“Wow, I never knew any of that” Belle was stunned. The way everyone spoke about Mr Gold she had never expected him to have such a tragic back story, and all the while he was raising two boys alone. The thought made her want to hug him, but she refrained, she doubted he wanted his son’s girlfriend hugging him. It wasn’t long before they found themselves outside Belle’s home.

“You live in a library?” Gold asked with a chuckle.

“No I wish” Belle smiled and looked up at the dark building “I live in the apartment above” she pointed to the stairs that ran up the side of the building to a dark blue door “it came with the job” she added as an explanation even though he didn’t ask.

“My grandson loves storytime here” Gold told her and she smiled “always talking about the story lady”

“That’s me!” Belle beamed and pointed to herself.

Gold smiled at her excitement. He felt himself developing a slight crush on the pretty librarian and had to shake his head to get rid of those thoughts, he was just being a silly old man. 

“Well it seems you have made quite the impression on young Henry” Gold smirked. Belle pulled her coat tighter around her as a cold gust of wind blew through the town. Gold saw her shiver “Get yourself inside” he ushered her towards the steps and watched as she ascended them.

“It was nice to meet you Mr Gold and thank you for walking me home” Belle called back down to him.

“You're welcome Miss French” he hollered back up.

“Belle” she told him sternly as she reached the top and put the key in the door.

“Sorry. You’re very welcome…… Belle” he said with a soft smile as she entered her home and he turned to head back to his house. He was in trouble……


	2. Chapter 2

Cameron sat at the island in the middle of his kitchen nursing his third – or was it his fourth? – Cup of coffee. He hadn't bothered going back to bed when he had got home; his mind had been too preoccupied with thoughts of Belle, some of them far too inappropriate for a man of his age.

He heard movement coming from down the hallway and braced himself for his son’s arrival. He hadn't expected Will to be awake so early after the state he had been in the night before. Sure enough Will walked in a few moments later obviously sporting a massive hangover.

“Morning” Will slurred. The previous night’s alcohol was obviously still present in his system. Gold said nothing; he knew anything he said in that moment wouldn’t be good. Instead he stood and gathered up his cell phone and wallet and grabbed his suit jacket from the back of the kitchen stool. He drained what was left of the coffee in his mug and shrugged his jacket on.

“So what did I do to warrant the silent treatment this time?” Will called out. Golds hand paused on his long black coat that he was just about to retrieve from the coat pegs by the front door. He debated just ignoring his son and carrying on to work but decided Will shouldn’t be let off the hook that easily, he stomped back into the kitchen where Will was just pouring himself a cup of coffee.

“You want to know why I'm giving you the silent treatment?” Gold said furiously “I thought it best not to speak as anything I have to say to you right now will not end well” he moved closer to his son “but I will say this one thing, you better phone your brother and apologize and while you're at it you also owe Belle an apology” he turned to leave before he said anything else.

Wills head shot up at the mention of Belles name “you met Belle? What did you think? She's hot right?” he grinned.

Gold sighed in despair and walked out of the door without answering, he couldn’t deal with Will at the moment. He was tired and knew if he said anymore things about Belle in that way he would end up saying something he would regret. He made his way down the street to his store, his little safe haven away from the rest of the world. He only ever had a few customers a day so he could be alone with his thoughts which suited him just fine.

Belle hovered outside the library, she looked over at the sign above the store across the street, and it read MR. GOLD PAWNBROKER & ANTIQUITIES DEALER. She had worked at the library for a year now but she had never ventured inside the pawn shop, even though the lure of the antique books in the window had been very hard to resist. She clutched the two takeaway coffees she had just purchased from Granny’s and hesitated for a moment, second guessing her decision. There was no harm in thanking him for walking her home   
was there?

Deep down she knew it was a bad idea but she couldn’t help it, she had always been impulsive, usually doing things before thinking. She had decided not to sleep when she got back home but lay on her bed for a while; her thoughts had been plagued by the elder Gold. He had intrigued her and even though she was dating Will, she wanted to see him,   
preferably whilst she wasn’t in her pyjamas. Now she was wondering if she was about the make an absolute fool of herself. Her hand hesitated on the door handle before she took a deep calming breath and squared her shoulders and pushed the door open, the little bell jingled above her head as she walked in.

Gold was stood at one of the counters at the back of the store and looked up when he heard the bell; he was surprised to see Belle stood before him.

“Belle?” he breathed, not quite believing his eyes “what can I do for you?” he asked when he had collected himself. 

“I uh-” she hesitated; her memory of him from earlier in the morning did nothing for her as she was now faced with him wearing one of his suits. And boy could he wear a suit! She stood there tongue tied, damn it she was a thirty one year old woman and here she was acting like a thirteen year old schoolgirl with a crush.

“Is everything OK?” Gold asked worriedly.

She took a deep breath, this is ridiculous, she thought “yes I'm fine” she finally replied and then remembered her reason for showing up unexpectedly “I wanted to thank you again for walking me home” she said and held out the takeaway cup of coffee with Granny’s diner logo on the side of it “I thought you might need a pick me up” she smiled.

He smiled back and took the proffered beverage gratefully and placed it down on the counter “you didn’t have to do that” he looked back at her as she took a sip of her own drink, he could see her eyes drifting to the book case that housed the rare book collection and he was momentarily blinded by her beauty. He had hoped in the cold light of day he would see her differently but if anything she looked even more striking.

When her attention came back to him he quickly looked away “I wanted too” she answered quietly. How could she possibly explain that she had wanted to see him again? This was so wrong on so many levels. She was dating Will. She should not be coming up with excuses to visit his father.

“Well it’s very much appreciated” he said as he picked up the cup and blew on the hot liquid before taking a sip. Belle had to look away as the image of him blowing on the cup did strange things to her. She knew this had been a bad idea.

“Did Will surface this morning?” she asked needing to find a change of subject before she did something stupid like jump his bones.

“Yes” Gold replied with a huff “I didn’t have time to stop and talk to him though” he thought it best to leave out the part about him telling him to apologise.   
Just in that moment Belles cell phone began to ring in her pocket, she pulled it out and rolled her eyes when she saw whose name was flashing on the screen.

“Speak of the devil” she muttered. She bit her lip and pondered what to do before pressing the reject call button. She looked up at Mr Gold who had been watching her intently 

“sorry, I know he's your son but I'm not ready to talk to him yet”

“Hey I'm not judging” he held his hands up in surrender.

Belle laughed and shoved her cell phone back into her pocket after having put it on silent. She looked up at the clock and sighed “I best get to work” it was almost nine am and she needed to open the library, if she was a minute late Regina Mills – the mayor of Storybrooke – wouldn’t have any qualms about firing her and shutting the library down. Gold felt disappointed that she had to leave so soon, he had been enjoying her company however brief it had been.

“Thank you for the coffee” Gold said as he watched her pull her bag back onto her shoulder.

“You’re welcome” she smiled brightly at him “have a good day Mr Gold” 

“You too Miss French” he gave a small wave as she got to the shops door. She turned and gave him a pointed look “sorry….. Belle”

“Much better” she winked flirtatiously and then realized what she had done. She hurried out of the door before he could see the blush rising in her cheeks.

Gold stood staring at the now closed door wondering what had just happened. She can’t have been flirting with him; it must have just been his sleep deprived mind and a little bit of wishful thinking. Although he could’ve sworn he caught a hint of a blush on her cheeks before she hastily left. He had to stop these thoughts, she was Wills girlfriend, and much too young for him anyway, she wouldn’t look twice at a man like him. He shook his head hoping to dispel the thoughts of the beautiful brunette swimming through his mind and headed into the back room. He needed to fix something, anything that would take his mind off of her. He found a pocket watch that had been brought in recently and began the long task of taking the brass time piece apart. This will keep my mind occupied he thought as he picked up his tiny screwdriver and tried to keep the thoughts of the alluring librarian at bay.

As Belle unlocked the door to the library she felt her cell phone vibrate in her pocket, knowing she couldn’t avoid him forever she pulled the device out and answered.

“Hello” she said in a clipped tone.

“Hey gorgeous” Will chirped, obviously not sensing Belles bad mood with him.

“I'm at work” she snapped.

“Surely you can spare a few minutes for little old me” he joked. Belle rolled her eyes.

“I think I spared enough of my time at three am in this morning” she retorted.

“Yeah soz about that babe” Will apologized halfheartedly. He really couldn’t remember what had happened the previous night but he had spoken to his older brother so a few of the gaps had been filled in.

“Soz?!” she asked in disbelief “is that all you can say to me? Christ you can’t even say the whole word can you?” 

“Jeez calm down Belles” Will groaned and rubbed his temple, his hangover was coming back with full force now “fine I'm sorry, happy now?” 

Belle just sighed and hung up the phone, she wasn’t in the mood for Wills crap. Her phone started ringing almost immediately but she just shoved it in her desk drawer. Will could stew for a few hours; she had a job to be getting on with, not that he would know anything about that. She had books to file and customers to serve and she had to prepare for her favourite part of the day, Storytime!

 

Gold groaned when he heard his phone begin to ring, he looked up at the clock and realized he had been hunched over Marcos fob watch for a good three hours solid. His back and his leg were going to pay for that mistake later. He grabbed his cell and saw it was Bae calling.

“Hello son” he grumbled as he stood from his seat, yeah his leg had seized up.

“Hey papa” Neal said happily. Gold rolled his eyes, he knew he was about to be asked a favour.

“What do you want?” Gold asked with a sigh.

“What makes you think I want something?” Neal tried to act nonchalant but failed miserably.

“Because I'm only ever papa when you want something, so I repeat what do you want?” Gold chuckled. Neal was silent; he knew he had been caught,

“OK you got me” Neal laughed “I'm stuck at work and I'm supposed to be picking Henry up from school and taking him to Storytime at the library-”

“And you were wondering if I would pick him up and take him?” Gold finished his son’s question.

“Yes please” Neal pleaded. 

“Fine” Gold sighed. He loved spending time with his grandson, he was only six years old but Gold could see a lot of himself in the youngster. It was only when he had hung up the phone that he realized what his son had said…… the library…… where Belle works. How was he supposed to not think about Belle when he is being sent to the place she works, fate was working against him it seemed. He had a couple of hours before school let out so he went back to work, only this time opting to stand at the counter and go through the books, if he was going to be able to walk later he needed to stand and stretch his leg instead of sitting.

At quarter to three Gold closed up his books and grabbed his coat from the back room, he kept odd hours at the shop so it was never unusual for him to close up early. He was nervous about seeing Belle again; he had hoped to get over this little infatuation before he saw her again but no such luck. He couldn’t let Bae down so he would just have to suck it up; spending the afternoon with Henry was worth it.

He made it to the school gates at about five minutes to three so he had time to spare, the school tended to frown up parents that were late for pick up. He stood and watched the other parents filtering into the school playground but no one acknowledged him, his reputation preceded him and he liked it that way. A few minutes later he heard the school bell ring followed by the loud patter of children’s feet running out of the front entrance, sure enough Henry was one of the first out of the door.

“Grandpa!” he bellowed just before he barrelled into Gold almost knocking him over. He winced when he put too much pressure on his bad leg.

“Be careful Henry” Gold admonished with a small chuckle.

“Sorry Grandpa” Henry looked down at the ground, he hadn't meant to get so excited but he loved seeing his grandpa.

“Did you have a good day?” Gold asked the small boy happily skipping along next to him now.

“Yeah” Henry nodded enthusiastically “Mrs Nolan let us do colouring, and we learnt how to count to twenty and – and we collected leaves and stuff to make a aut – a aut…..”

“Autumn?” Gold hedged a guess at the word Henry was trying to say.

“Yeah an au- tum picture” Henry took a deep breath; he always got so excited about school that he forgot to breath. Gold gave him a fond smile.

“Wow you had a busy day. You’re probably way too tired to go to Storytime” Gold ruffled the boy’s hair. Please say yes?

“No!” Henry cried and Gold felt bad when he saw the tears glistening in his grandsons eyes “I love Miss Belle’s stories”

Gold chuckled, it seems he wasn’t the only member of the Gold family enamoured by the lovely Miss French “come on then or we’re going to be late”

They walked the two blocks from the school to the library and filed in behind some of the other adults who were entering with their little ones.

Henry broke away from his grandpa as soon as they were inside and he saw his friend August. They both say crossed legged on the colourful rug situated in front of a very tacky and flowery armchair. Belle came out of the back office when she heard the voices of the kids getting louder, she was clutching today's story to her chest so the children couldn’t see what she was about to read. Scanning the room she saw little Henry Gold sat on the rug and then looked around for Emma or Neal but instead she found him.

What is he doing here? She thought to herself. He’d never brought Henry to Storytime and the one day she had been trying to get him out of her head he had to show up. She couldn’t run and hide, she would never let the children down. Instead she gave him a shy smile as she caught his eye and he gave a nod of his head in acknowledgement. 

Gold watched her intently as she took her seat in front of the little boys and girls, she was a natural with them and he could only imagine what a gentle and caring mother she would make. He had to stop thinking about her, she was young and beautiful and even if she weren't dating Will, she still wouldn’t look at an old man like him. He was grumpy and people feared him, he knew the nicknames people called him, one such nickname was The Dark One, which he thought was a little extreme but still, Belle wouldn’t want to be associated with a man like him. 

He was broken out of his thoughts by the sound of the children clapping and soon Henry was bounding over to him with a huge smile on his face.

“Grandpa, did you hear the story? Miss Belle is so good at doing all the voices isn't she?” he beamed.

“She sure is” Gold laughed at his grandsons exuberance.

“Hi Mr Gold, Hi Henry” Gold turned to see Belle walking towards them.

“Hi Miss Belle” Henry looked up at Belle like she hung the moon “cool story”

“Glad you thought so” she bent over so she was eye level with him and Gold had to try and concentrate on the poster on the wall as a way to distract himself from checking out her rear, he was failing miserably “why don’t you check it out?” he heard her say and almost chocked when he thought she was talking to him but then he realised she was talking to Henry about the book. She looked up at Gold just briefly catching him staring at her butt.

“Can I grandpa?” Henry pleaded.

Gold had to clear his suddenly dry throat “of course you can”

Henry grabbed the book from Belles hands and ran off cheering.

“Henry slow down!” Gold called after the young boy.

“Oh leave him be” Belle put her hand on his forearm and watched as Henry jumped up and down waiting in the queue to check out the book “I'm just so happy when a child gets so excited about books”

Cameron looked down at her hand on his arm; she was still watching Henry with a soft smile on her face and hadn't noticed she hadn't moved it. He cleared his throat causing her to look at him and it was then she realized what she was doing.

“Oh sorry” she snapped her hand away like she had been burned.

“Not a problem” he muttered. He honestly didn’t recognize his own voice now “Henry! It’s time to go” he called out and Henry came running over with his newly acquired book.

“Bye Miss Belle” he said as he passed the librarian on his way to catch up with his grandpa.

“Bye Henry” she waved “bye Mr Gold” 

“Goodbye Miss French” Gold said as he held the door open for Henry to exit ahead of him. Once he was outside he felt like he could breathe again. He wasn’t sure what it was about Belle but he needed to get over it, he felt like a teenager with a crush every time she was near. He resolved to avoid her, at least until he could get a handle on whatever it was he was feeling. It wouldn’t be easy because Storybrooke was a small town but he had to try.

Belle stood at the entrance to the library and watched Gold walk down the street with his grandson and sighed. She couldn’t help but watch him; there was something about him, and something she hadn't felt before. She knew she couldn’t do anything about it, and she made the decision there and then that she needed to avoid him, maybe that way she could get rid of these feelings and he would just go back to being her boyfriend’s father. It was going to be hard but she had to try.


	3. Chapter 3

Two weeks. It had been two very long weeks since Gold had taken Henry to Storytime. Two weeks since he had resolved to avoid Belle and not think about Belle so he could get rid of the silly crush he had on her. It had been hard at first to forget her and for him to not stare out of his shop window in the hopes of catching just a glimpse of her but he had succeeded. He’d thrown himself into his work and had babysat Henry on a few more occasions than usual, although he made sure he never offered on Storytime day.

Today would be the real test though. Today was Wednesday and the day of Henry’s seventh birthday party and he knew she would be there. As Emma’s best friend and Wills girlfriend she had double the reason to be invited. 

Gold clutched the gift he had bought for his Grandson under his arm and started the painstakingly difficult task of ascending the stairs to his son and future daughter in laws apartment. Luckily it was only two flights of stairs. When he finally made it he knocked on the door and waited. He could hear loud voices and children’s music blaring on the other side just before the door swung open.

Gold couldn’t stop the bubble of laughter that escaped him at the site that met him.

“Not a word” Neal grumbled. He had somehow been roped into having his face painted and now he looked like a clown – literally.

“Wasn’t going to say anything” Gold was trying to keep a straight face “Chuckles!” he muttered under his breath as he passed Neal and had to duck to avoid the cocktail sausage being thrown at his head. He was still laughing when he got to the kitchen island where the other adults had congregated. 

He found Emma with Mary Margaret Nolan and her husband David who had brought their son, also named Neal. He had been named after Golds eldest when Neal had helped to get Mary Margaret to the hospital after a particularly nasty car accident on the way when she was in labour. David had been in a coma for a week and had missed the birth but if it hadn't been for Neal’s quick actions then none of them would've survived. Also in attendance was Zelena Mills – the mayors older sister – who had brought her daughter Robin and a few other parents that Gold had seen at the school gates a few times. 

“Hey Gold” Emma greeted her father in law to be. She wasn’t much for calling him dad or papa like Neal, and calling him by his first name seemed too weird to her so she opted to call him Gold.

“Miss Swan” Gold nodded and placed his gift down on the table with the other gifts “where’s the birthday boy?” 

“Over there getting his face painted” Emma pointed over to the other side of the room and that’s when Gold noticed Belle. So she was the one who had painted her son up to look like a clown!

“Belles really good at art so she got roped into helping out with the party” Mary Margaret explained. She was a quiet woman from what Gold knew of her but Henry adored her as his teacher.

Gold just nodded and tried to turn his attention back to the adults that were now talking about their children’s school play that was coming up. After another scan of the room Cameron noticed something odd.

“Where’s Will?” he asked Emma quietly. She just gave him a look as if to say don’t ask. Gold was furious with his youngest son. He knew there was something going on with Will at the moment but that was no excuse to miss his nephew’s birthday party. He excused himself to go out on the fire escape and make a call. The phone rang a couple of times before loud music attacked his eardrums causing him to pull his cell away from his ear.

“Hello!” Will shouted down the speaker.

“Where are you?” Gold growled. He didn’t even want to start with pleasantries.

“Dad? Is that you? Hold on a sec” Will continued to shout but luckily Gold could hear the music getting fainter so he hoped Will was going somewhere quieter “that’s better, what’s up?”

“What’s up is that you are supposed to be at Henry’s birthday party” Gold told him sternly.

“Oh come on I don’t want to spend my afternoon with a bunch of snotty nosed kids” Will whined like a child. Gold imagined he was probably stamping his foot too.

“I don’t care, family comes first so drop whatever you’re doing and get your arse here” Cameron ordered.

“Family? That’s a joke” Will scoffed “Look I’m twenty five years old and if I say I’m not coming then I’m not coming” and with that Will hung up. Gold was fuming when he heard the line disconnect. He didn’t know what had gotten into Will lately but he wasn’t about to put up with anymore from him. He knew Neal was on the verge of washing his hands of him and for the life of him he couldn’t understand why Belle put up with it. She must really love him, Gold thought. With that thought and a heavy sigh Gold went back inside the apartment.

Belle looked up from the latest face that she was painting and saw the moment Gold re-entered the party. He looked furious and for a moment Belle could actually see the man that Ruby had described, he looked downright scary when mad. She guessed it was probably to do with Will, she had been furious herself when he had phoned and told her he wasn’t attending the party. He had only told her five minutes before he was due to pick her up.

She carried on painting the image of a Dalmatian on Robin Mills’ face, smiling a little when the little girl scrunched up her nose as Belle painted it black. When she looked up again a few minutes later Gold was smiling and laughing with Neal and Henry now, she’d had such fun painting Neal’s face earlier, Henry and Emma had been in hysterics and Neal wouldn’t stay still so Belle kept going wrong which only made them laugh harder.

When she had finished up her latest masterpiece she looked around for any more children she may have missed and saw that they were all painted, she would've hated for any of the kids to have been left out. She put away her paints and brushes so no little hands could get hold of them and headed over to the adults.

“Here she is” Emma smiled and put her arm around the smaller girl, Emma had a good foot in height over Belle “thank you for doing that”

“Don’t mention it, I had fun” Belle waved her friend away.

“Well now you can enjoy the party, get some food and drinks are over in the kitchen” Emma heard her name being called and headed over to Neal leaving Belle alone. She saw Mr  
Gold sat on the sofa in the quieter area of the apartment, she could use some quiet time herself after her time with the kids so she grabbed a plate of food and headed over to join him.

“Mind if I join you?” she asked before she sat down. She didn’t want to impose if he wanted to be alone.

Gold startled at the new voice, he’d been lost in his own thoughts “be my guest” he gestured to the seat next to him and scooted over a little to give her room. 

“Are you enjoying the party?” she asked as she sat down and placed her plate on the little coffee table in front of them. She had spent the last two weeks not thinking about the elder Gold, she thought she had succeeded at forgetting him and throwing herself into her relationship with Will. She tried to put it down to a moment of madness, she had been having trouble with Will and his father had appeared at the right time, and he was nice to her and treated her in the way that she wished Will would. The day after the incident at The Rabbit Hole Will had shown up at her work clutching a bunch of lilies, wearing the adorable smile that had attracted Belle in the first place and she had forgiven him. 

“Honestly” Gold leant closer so no one could hear him “I don’t care much for company” he whispered.

“Oh come on, it’s your grandson’s birthday” Belle bumped him with her shoulder.

“I know and I love him” Gold said “but other people’s kids, not so much”

Belle had to laugh at his the face he pulled.

“Are you enjoying the party?” he then asked her.

“yeah it’s fun” Belle replied a little bit too enthusiastically, Gold raised his eyebrows at her reply and she sighed “alright so its ok, I was supposed to be here with Will who you obviously know by now isn't here and Emma's my best friend but I don’t know anyone else here and she's super busy so I feel a bit out of place, that’s why I agreed to do the face painting” she stopped and waited for a reaction and then chanced a glance at Gold when there was no reply.

“well it looks like we’re in the same boat, sort of” he eventually replied “apart from my son and Emma and obviously Henry I don’t really get on with anyone else here, probably because I'm their landlord, tends to make people dislike you” he looked down, his reputation got him down sometimes “and then there is Zelena, the red headed one” he pointed her out to Belle when she looked around the room confused” she's always trying to come on to me no matter how many times I've turned her down, the woman will not take no for an answer”

Belle laughed softly at his last statement “don’t worry I will protect you” and he muttered a ‘thank you’ in reply.

“So I'm guessing you spoke to Will?” Belle asked tentatively. Gold looked pained at the question but felt he should answer.

“Yes I did” he sighed and then admitted “it didn’t go well”

“I don’t know what's going on with him at the moment” Belle said “one minute he was fine about coming here and the next I was getting a phone call at the last minute to tell me he wasn’t coming, something about helping a friend move house” she knew it was a lie, Will wasn’t much for hard labour.

“I don’t know what's going on either” Gold confessed, he had an idea but he couldn’t be sure “maybe Bae can get to the bottom of it” 

“Bae?” Belle asked, she had heard him call Neal Bae the night they brought Will home but hadn't thought much of it.

“Sorry I forget he prefers Neal” Gold chuckled.

“Why do you call him Bae?” she inquired.

“His name is Baelfire Neal Gold” Gold said quietly, Neal would kill him if anyone found out. He’d used Neal for so long now that no one really knew the truth.

“Is that Scottish?” she probed further. She quite liked getting to know the Gold family a bit better. He would just think she was interested as Wills partner so he wouldn’t think anything of it.

“Yeah it’s an old family name” Gold admitted.

“I like it, I love unusual names” Belle declared. The conversation flowed on from there, with Belle talking about her love of literature and Gold inviting her to take a look at his rare book collection at the shop, they talked about family and work and before they knew it it was time to cut the cake. 

They got up and joined in the chorus of ‘Happy Birthday’ as everyone gathered around Henry and Neal brought out the Alice in Wonderland themed cake that had been made for the occasion by Golds friend Jefferson’s wife, also coincidentally called Alice. Gold smiled at the look on Henrys face when he saw the cake, he’d had it commissioned based on Henrys new favourite book that he had recently gotten from Belle at the library. 

He saw Neal whisper something in Henrys ear and the next thing Gold knew Henry was running up to him and throwing his little arms around his Grandpas waist.

“Thank you for my cake Grandpa!” the little boy smiled up at Gold.

“You are very welcome young man, I'm glad you like it” Gold knelt down as best he could with his bad leg so he was eye level with his Grandson “make sure you thank Alice’s mom and dad when you see them too”

“I will” Henry agreed 

A couple of hours later as the party was winding down and people started to leave Gold saw Belle grabbing her coat and saying goodbye to Bae and Emma. After talking to her for most of the night he knew his crush had come back tenfold, he felt awful about his feelings and a little bit embarrassed and hoped she never found out.

She looked over at him when she was just about to leave and she gave him a small wave which he returned with a pained smile. She’d probably dump Will if she ever found out the things that went through his head about her; she wouldn’t want to date someone whose father was such an old pervert. 

“Finally you’re alone” he shuddered when he recognised the voice behind him.

“Good evening Miss Mills” he sighed. 

“Have you been avoiding me?” Zelena pouted as she came to stand in front of Gold.

“Whatever makes you think that?” Gold tried to step around the red head but she blocked his path.

“I haven’t seen you around much, and you always seem to come to the house when I’m not home” she whined and moved closer.

“Believe me dearie that’s just a coincidence” he lied. He always made sure Zelena was out before he went to the see the mayor about town business. 

“So how about you take me to dinner to make up for it” Zelena ventured and Gold had to roll his eyes. No matter how many times she asked the answer was always no, but she never got the hint.

But this time something made him hesitate, it wasn’t that he wanted to go out with Zelena but he needed a distraction. He needed to get over whatever it was he was feeling for Belle and Zelena wasn’t horrible to look at. Granted she was crazy but maybe going out with someone, anyone, would get his mind back on track. 

“Ok Zelena, dinner? Saturday night?” he gave in.

Zelena was stunned, she’d been expecting the usual response that she got from Gold whenever she asked him out and it took a moment for her brain to comprehend what was happening “Saturday is great”

“I’ll pick you up at 8” he told her and walked away, ignoring the cat that got the cream look that Zelena was giving him. He was so going to regret this decision!

Belle arrived home at about 7pm, she trudged up the steps to her apartment, the party had exhausted her. Who knew a seven year olds birthday party would be more tiring than one of Ruby’s nights out. She heard her cell ringing in her bag just as she put her key in the door, so when she got the door open she pulled her phone out and saw Wills name flashing on the screen.

“Hello Will” she sighed

“Hey babe” Will said happily, he never could seem to sense when she was in a bad mood.

“What can I do for you?” she asked.

“I wanted to apologise for not coming to the party today, I feel really bad so I wanted to make it up to you and take you out to dinner on Saturday night, somewhere nice” Will told her. She was surprised but also still angry at him.

“Shouldn’t you be apologising to your family?” she queried.

“Don’t worry I will be” Will told her “I'm going to get Henry an extra special birthday present”

He sounded so sincere that Belle thought that maybe he was finally realising what an idiot he had been recently.

“Ok” Belle acquiesced.

“So dinner Saturday?” Will ventured again.

“Yeah why not” she replied. This was more like the Will she cared about, whatever had caused the turnaround in his attitude she was grateful for it.

Gold worked long hours at the shop for the following two days before his date with Zelena, he kept second guessing his decision and many a time he had picked up his phone to cancel but then convinced himself this was something he needed to do. He couldn’t think about Belle anymore, it was driving him crazy, he needed a distraction and at least Zelena liked him. She was a beautiful woman with her long red hair and pale skin, she was no Belle but he couldn’t keep comparing everyone to her.

Saturday rolled around and Gold was at home getting ready, he was taking her to the new sea food restaurant that had just opened in town which was run by a new couple to town Eric and Ariel Prince. He was stood in front of the hallway mirror doing up his tie when Will appeared from his bedroom, he was also dressed up in a black shirt and black jeans, he didn’t look as smart as Cameron but he was definitely more dressed up than usual.

“Are you going somewhere nice?” Gold inquired as Will walked past him. Things had been a little strained between the father and son since the day of Henry's party when Will didn’t show up. He had apologised to Neal, Emma and Henry and he had been told that he had given Belle an apology too. The only person he hadn't apologised to was Cameron.

“Taking Belle out” Will mumbled as he threw his leather jacket on, it was only then he noticed his father getting dressed up on a Saturday night, it wasn’t unusual for Cameron to be in a three piece suit during the day but his usual attire on a Saturday night usually consisted of sweat pants and his police academy t shirt “where are you going?” 

“Got a date” Gold confessed.

“You have a date” Will laughed.

Gold was immediately offended by his son’s reaction “yes as a matter of fact I do, why is that so funny?”

“Oh come on dad” Will scoffed “you went on a few disastrous dates after mom left but then nothing for years, and you’re not exactly young anymore” he gestured to Gold. 

“I get plenty of women asking me out I’ll have you know” Gold growled. He did not expect to have to stand here and be insulted by his son when he was already feeling apprehensive about this date. 

“Yeah sure you do” Will replied with a hint of sarcasm.

“Just get to your date and leave me be” Gold pointed towards the door and Will laughed again and headed out. Gold glanced in the mirror and took a good hard look at himself. 

Yes he wasn’t a young man anymore but he wasn’t that past it, he had few more lines on his face than he’d had just ten years ago and maybe he was a little grey around the edges but some women liked that about a man, they called it distinguished he thought. Will had just wanted to hurt him and doubt himself but he refused to let that happen so he picked up the keys to his black Cadillac and headed over to the Mills residence. 

Gold stepped out of the car and made his way up to the front door and rang the bell. Regina – Zelena’s sister – answered.

“Good evening Gold” she grinned.

“Good evening Madam Mayor” Gold nodded. Regina called out for her sister to let her know Cameron had arrived. They stood awkwardly in silence until Zelena appeared at the door.

“Thanks for looking after Robin sis” Zelena kissed her sister on the cheek “see you later” 

“Shall we” Gold held out his arm for Zelena to loop hers through. Zelena smiled smugly at her sister as they descended the steps and walked to Golds car and then they drove the short distance to the restaurant, Sebastian’s.

As they entered the restaurant Zelena kept a firm grip on Cameron’s arm and he really was beginning to think he’d made a mistake agreeing to this date. He didn’t really want to lead Zelena on as he knew that it would not be going any further than one date but he couldn’t keep going on the way he was. Fantasising about his sons girlfriend was not good for his mental health.

“This place looks really expensive” Zelena grinned and clapped her hands together in glee. Gold knew then and there that Zelena had only been interested in him because he had money. The little devil on his shoulder decided to poke his head up at that moment to remind him of Will had said you’re not exactly young a anymore. Of course she was only after his money, why else would she be interested in an old man like him?

The waiter showed them to their table and pulled the chair out for Zelena while Gold seated himself and he offered them each a menu which they took. Gold opened up the menu, he was grateful to have something to hide behind to shield him from Zelena hungry gaze for a few minutes at least. As he was just perusing the main courses and trying to avoid Zelena’s wandering hands under the table he heard a familiar laugh come from behind him, he glanced over his shoulder and saw Belle with his son. Well this night just got even worse!

Zelena saw where Golds gaze had ventured “isn't that your son over there?” she pointed to the younger couple.

“Yes it is” Gold muttered.

“Oh maybe they could join us” Zelena was already standing from her seat to head over to ask them before Gold could register what she’d said. He tried to stop her but she was already gone, her green dress fluttering behind her. Gold buried his head in his hands and silently sent up a prayer that they would refuse her offer but then he heard Wills voice.

“Hey if pops is paying then how can we refuse?” 

Golds head shot up and he swung around in his seat. Will was already striding over to their table with Zelena close behind and a very obviously embarrassed Belle walking slowly behind them. This wasn’t how she had wanted the night to go, her romantic meal with her boyfriend was now an awkward meal with her boyfriend, his father – whom she had been majorly crushing on, and the woman said crush had said he couldn’t stand. 

Belle and Gold ended up sitting opposite each other with their dates to the side of them; unfortunately for Gold this meant that Zelena’s wandering hands were even closer now. 

“So how did you pair meet?” Zelena asked Will and Belle, Will answered.

“Oh we’ve been friends for a long time but then about 3 months ago something just changed didn’t it Belles?” he looked at Belle who just nodded as she took a sip of her water. Will and Zelena continued to chat, completely oblivious to their dates sitting in silence. Gold glanced at Belle and she was staring intently at her water glass while running her index finger around the rim, he felt a sudden urge to make her smile.

“You promised to protect me” he whispered so only she could here. Belle smiled and looked up at him.

“Sorry” she mouthed back. The night wore on and to any outsiders it actually looked like Will was on a date with Zelena and Belle was on a date with Cameron, if only they knew that that was how Gold and Belle would have preferred it. They had just finished their dessert when Will finally acknowledged his father and girlfriend.

“Cheers for dinner pops, me and Belles really appreciate it don’t we babe?” he urged her to agree but Belle glared at him.

“Your father is not paying for our meal Will, you offered to take me out so you can pay for ours” she told him sternly and Gold had to bite the inside of his cheek to keep from smiling.

“Wow what’s got into you tonight?” Will muttered.

“I’m not talking about his here” Belle snapped and stood from her seat, she threw her napkin on the table and grabbed her handbag from the back of her chair “thank you for talking to me Mr Gold, at least one of the Gold men had some manners tonight” and with that she stormed off, Will stared after her for a moment before growling angrily and stomping odd after her. Gold worried for a moment and was about to go after them to make sure Belle was ok, Will could have quite the temperature when goaded, when he felt am arm snake around his shoulders, he’d forgotten about his own date.

“I thought they’d never leave” she purred in his ear.

“You invited them over” Gold pointed out and moved away from her ever increasingly annoying touch.

“I was being nice to your son” she bristled “but enough about them, how about we go back to yours for some fun?” she pushed herself against him and he stood abruptly, his leg protested at the sudden moment.

“I’m sorry Zelena but I’m tired and I have an early start tomorrow” he lied. Tomorrow was Sunday, his only day off “I’ll drop you off at yours” he began to walk away and went to pay the check leaving a fuming Zelena sat at the table. 

She eventually caught up with him at the restaurants exit “so maybe we can do this again sometime?” she probed.

“I don’t think so dearie” Gold shook his head, he wouldn’t lead her on and also he didn’t think he could stand another night of her lecherous advances.

“Oh really? Well I think you should change your mind” she grinned wickedly.

“And why would I do that?” Gold exhaled. He really had had enough for one night.

“Well it would be a shame if Will were to find out that you were crushing on his girlfriend” 

Gold swerved the car at her statement and he struggled to right the steering wheel “what the hell are you on about woman?” 

“Oh come on Gold” she scoffed “anyone with two eyes could see you two flirting with each other over dinner, well everyone except your son”

“You’re crazy” he blurted out.

“Well be that as it may” Zelena slid across the seat to place her hand on his knee “we better have another date or I’ll make sure Will knows exactly what's going through your head when it comes to his girlfriend”

Gold glanced across at the crazy woman in his car; the lights from the streetlamps illuminated her face making her look insane. He gulped.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope people are enjoying my story, as i said at the beginning this is my first attempt at writing so thank you for the nice comments so far!

A couple of weeks later after their disastrous date Belle lay awake next to Will, they’d been to a party and she had had a few to drink – not as many as Will to say the least but he had convinced her to stay at his with a promise of breakfast in the morning. And if there was one thing she did like about Will it was his cooking. Things were still strained between them after that night, they had fought and she had not spoken to him for about three days before she finally relented and met with him to talk. He had apologised profusely and swore that he would start putting her first and things had gotten better. 

She felt awkward being there knowing that Wills dad was also in the house, probably in his bed by now, her thoughts wandered a little too far then, wondering if he wore pyjamas or if he slept in just his underwear or perhaps he slept naked. She shook her head from those thoughts, it wasn’t fair to Will to be thinking those things about his dad when she was lay next to him. He was snoring so loudly that Belle knew she wouldn’t be getting any sleep, she also was starting to feel the effects of her hangover and she knew if she didn’t get a glass of water soon she was going to have an almighty headache in the morning.

She sighed and threw the covers back; she was wearing one of Wills button up shirts that he had gotten her from the laundry room when she had been very adamant she would not be sleeping in the nude. She did briefly wonder if it was in fact Wills shirt as she had never actually seen him anything other than black tops and leather jacket and this shirt was purple, but if it wasn’t Wills then that only left one other persons it could be and the thought of wearing something of his was another thought she needed to get out of her head.

She poked her head out of the door and couldn’t hear any movement anywhere so she tiptoed to the kitchen so as not to wake anyone. She grabbed a glass off the sideboard and went to the tap to fill the glass with some cold water. Just as she finished her drink she heard a throat clear behind her, she yelped in surprise almost dropping the glass.

There behind her was Cameron Gold, looking a bit dishevelled, probably having just woke up. She was at a loss for words, he was wearing a grey t shirt and when she glanced down she could just about make out in the moonlight the red and green colours of his tartan pyjama pants. At least that put a stop to some of her more outlandish fantasies.

“Belle?” he looked at her like he was trying to decide if she was actually stood in front of him or if he was dreaming.

“Hi Mr Gold” she had no idea what else to say. Subconsciously she pulled the shirt she was wearing down a little, right now she knew she wasn’t leaving much to the imagination.

Gold shook his head and he seemed to wake up a bit more then “what are you doing?” he asked.

“I’m sorry” she stuttered “Will said it would be ok if I stayed over after the party, he was a bit too drunk to walk me home” she nervously laughed hoping to ease some of the tension. 

“I meant in the kitchen” he smiled. Will was twenty five years old; Gold was under no illusion that his son had never had a girl stay over before. He had heard countless times when Will had tried to sneak a girl out thinking he was still asleep.

“Oh” Belle shuffled her feet “I couldn’t sleep, so I thought I would get a glass of water” 

“I heard movement, I thought we were being robbed” he laughed and turned to switch on the light. Belle was momentarily blinded by the light and lifted her hand to cover her eyes. It was only then that Gold noticed what she was wearing; his eyes had a mind of their own as they drifted down to her bare thighs. Oh God she was torturing him! And was that his shirt??

The sight of this gorgeous young woman wearing his clothes had him sitting down quickly on one of the kitchen stools, hoping he could hide the evidence of his obvious attraction to her. What was the matter with him?! Belle looked at the doorway and considered going back to bed, but her feet had other ideas and carried her to the stool next to her boyfriend’s father. 

“So how was your night?” he asked knowing they’d been to a party. Ruby’s birthday he thinks.

“It was ok” Belle mumbled “not really my scene anymore; I’m too old for drinking and partying”

“Oh come on” Gold chuckled “you’re only what? In your late twenties? That’s nowhere near old, come back to me when you’re my age, that’s old” 

“I’m thirty one” Belle laughed when Gold looked shocked.

“No way” Cam shook his head not believing her but she nodded “wow I’d have said 25-26 at the oldest”

“Well thank you Mr Gold” Belle blushed. She knew he was probably wondering why she was dating a young man like Will now. But he didn’t say anything. 

“Cameron” he blurted “you can call me Cameron if you like”

Belle smiled “ok….. Cameron” she tested the name on her tongue.

“So why couldn’t you sleep?” he asked 

Because I kept thinking about you naked just down the hall! she had to bite her tongue to stop herself from saying the words out loud. Maybe she had drunk more than she thought tonight “maybe it was just being in a different bed” she mused.

“Wills snoring probably doesn’t help” Gold grinned at her trying to put her at ease. 

“Yeah that too” she laughed sadly. She didn’t really want to talk about Will with Cameron, not when she had been thinking nonstop about him since the night he had walked her home. He had been so sweet and nothing at all like anyone told her. He had been funny and she could've talked for hours to him about literature, he was everything she wanted in a man and she couldn’t be with him. A man like him would never want to be with her, even if she broke up with Will he still wouldn’t date his sons ex.

“Sorry if I said something wrong” he placed his hand over hers, his voice was hoarse and he was struggling to keep himself in check, especially with the way she was now stroking his hand. When he spoke her eyes snapped to his.

“I’m sorry” she went to pull her hand away but she noticed that he was stroking the back of her hand with his thumb and she liked it. 

“What are you sorry for?” Gold asked gently, he could see something was wrong and he didn’t like it one bit.

“For waking you” she lied “the last thing you want is to be sat down here with me at 2am” she added.

“I can think of worse things to be doing” he shot back and then realised what he’d said. She looked up at him then, her eyes met his, searching for something but he didn’t know what. He felt like a deer caught in head lights while her eyes were locked on his, he couldn’t blink, afraid she would disappear in that moment if he did. 

It felt like hours had passed before she blinked and looked away “I should get back” she sighed and stood up from the counter. Gold was still frozen in place and simply nodded at her statement “goodnight” she said quietly and started back up the hallway. She paused with her hand on the doorknob to Wills room, she looked at the door and then back towards the kitchen. She couldn’t do this anymore, maybe it was the alcohol making her brave, she didn’t know, but her head and heart were finally agreeing and she quickly walked back to the kitchen. Cam was still sat in the same place but his head was in his hands now, he hadn’t heard her come back.

“Hi” she said breathlessly. He looked up slowly, wondering again if he was dreaming. She walked slowly towards him and he angled himself toward her on his stool, she came to a stop a mere few inches away. Her hand came up agonisingly slow and stroked his cheek; he closed his eyes and then felt her lips on his. Stunned he pulled back, but her hand remained on his cheek, she looked hurt by his rejection and started to remove her hand but it didn’t get far because his hand was suddenly behind her head pulling her lips back to his in a searing kiss that had her toes curling. 

So this is what heaven feels like! Gold thought as Belles lips met his. This shouldn’t be happening, he knew it deep down, but why did it feel so right. She had come back to him, she could’ve gone back to bed and their weird little moment could’ve been forgotten but not now, not now that she was winding her arms around his neck and he was caressing her back with one hand while the other remained clutching the back of her head lightly. Her tongue nudged at the seam of his lips and he opened his mouth willingly, they kissed lazily until they both needed air.

“Wow” she breathed with her forehead resting against his. 

“Yeah” Gold agreed just as breathless.

“That was better than I imagined” she beamed at him.

“You think of me?” he asked stunned. No way could she have been thinking of him the way he had been thinking of her, not when she is dating his son. The idea baffled him.

“Sometimes” she looked down sheepishly “I know I shouldn’t, but I can’t help it”

Gold looked at her, this gorgeous creature thought about him the way he’d been thinking about her, but it was all still so wrong.

“You’re dating my son” he blurted out without thinking. 

“You kissed me back” she shot back. Her hands were still around his neck and his were resting comfortably on her hips.

He stood then, breaking the contact “this shouldn’t have happened” he said more to himself “Will, he'll hate me forever if he finds out” he paced and ran his fingers through his hair.

“So what are you saying?” Belle looked away; tears were beginning to form because she knew where this was going.

“I’m saying-” he tried to think “I’m saying that as much as I want you Belle, as much as I think you are the most beautiful woman I have ever met, this can’t happen, I can’t lose my son”

“I understand” She couldn’t stop the few tears from falling from her eyes as she nodded and quietly walked out of the room without a single word. Gold watched her go, he gripped the kitchen counter so hard to stop himself from chasing after her that his knuckles turned white. When he heard the soft click of Wills bedroom door he slumped back in the stool and buried his head in his hands. All he could feel was her lips on his, his skin was burning from where she had kissed him. He hated himself for hurting her but she would have been even more hurt if they had carried on. It was for the best.... but why did it feel like his heart had been ripped from his chest.

Belle quietly entered Wills bedroom and stood leaning against the door for a minute, Will was still in the same position she’d left him and seemed to be snoring louder if that were possible. She considered getting dressed and leaving him a note to explain she had gone home, she wanted her own bed where she could wallow in self-pity for a few days but she knew Gold would still be in the kitchen, she knew he was right to send her away, but it didn’t stop it from hurting. 

There was an armchair in the corner of Wills room so Belle decided to curl up in it; she couldn’t lie down next to Will knowing what she had just done. The chair was by the window and she sat and watched as the first few flakes of snow began to fall. December was officially here.

Belle was woken abruptly a few hours later by someone shaking her shoulder.... hard.

“What the hell Belles?” Will grumbled.... loudly. 

“Keep it down Will” Belle moaned, she felt like little dwarves with pickaxes were hammering in her head. 

“Why are you over here?” he asked ignoring her obvious discomfort.

She opened her eyes fully and realised she had fallen asleep in the chair “I couldn’t sleep because of your snoring so I got up and watched the snow falling, I must have fell asleep”

“I expect my girlfriend to be in bed with me when I wake up if she stays over” he said sharply. Belle looked up at him and for a moment wished she could end things with him. That would be a solution to her problem, that’s the only thing holding Cameron back from her. 

“Yeah well sleep would’ve been easy if you didn’t sound like a bloody freight train when you sleep” Belle growled and stood abruptly, swaying slightly from the sudden movement. 

She grabbed her jeans and roughly shoved her legs into them. She kept the shirt she’d been wearing on and grabbed her jacket, her top from the previous night and her bag and stormed out of the room, almost knocking him over in the process who had come to investigate when he had heard the yelling.

“Sorry” she mumbled but kept going without even looking at him. She’d had it with the Gold men for now.

Cameron watched her go worriedly before turning to his son “what did you do?”

“She’s bloody crazy that one dad” Will pointed at Belles retreating form “I woke up and she's asleep in the chair”

Gold rolled his eyes and stomped off, he was in no mood for this. He hadn’t been able to sleep after finally leaving the kitchen and heading back to his bed a few hours ago. The thought of Belle not getting back into bed with Will after their kiss made him feel relieved, and that just made him feel even more awful.

Belle walked the short distance home and climbed the steps to her apartment. Luckily today was Sunday so she didn’t have to open the library, she could spend all day in bed and no one would disturb her. One day, just one day of wallowing and then she would forget all about Gold, and his gorgeous brown eyes, and the taste of him on her lips, and the feel of his hands on her body. Ok it might take more than a day! A shower, that sounded like a good idea, maybe she could wash away the feel of him.

A few hours later Belle was laid in bed, with a tub of chunky monkey ice cream and she was watching a romantic film on her small television. It was the end where the male lead declares his undying love for the female lead, and they kiss while the music swells around them.

“Oh like it ever happens that way!” she yelled at the TV “he’ll break your heart sweetheart!” 

The shower hadn’t helped, if anything it had made her skin even more on fire, how was she supposed to face him again? It was inevitable, she was dating his son, she was best friends with his daughter in law and she ran the library that his grandson frequented a lot. She was dreading it, and for reasons only she knew there was no way she could break up with Will. She supposed maybe it was for the best, she couldn’t date Will and have an affair with his dad, that would be some Jerry Springer stuff right there.

She stayed in bed all that day until she heard someone knocking at her door, she’d turned her phone off when she got home just wanting to be away from the world for just one day. She trudged to the door in her fluffy robe and slippers not caring what she looked like and opened up to find Ruby standing there looking worried.

“Where the hell have you been?” Ruby stood there all long legs and red hair tapping her foot with her hands on her hips.

“I’m sick” Belle lied and turned back to her living room leaving the door open in an open invitation to her best friend.

“What did Will do now?” Ruby sighed. She knew her friend better than anyone and there was no way she was sick.

“Will didn’t do anything” Belle pulled her robe tighter around herself and tried to hide her face. She didn’t want Ruby to know what she’d done.

“Well then what’s really wrong? And don’t tell me you’re sick because even when you had the flu last year you refused to stay in bed” 

“I can’t tell you” Belle hated to keep a secret from Ruby but she’d never understand. She had nothing but bad things to say about Gold.

“Belle you can tell me anything” Ruby was officially worried “come on, we’ve told each other everything since we were kids, whatever it is it can’t be that bad” she moved closer and pulled Belles hand into her lap. 

Belle hesitated but decided she needed to tell someone and she trusted Ruby “I kissed someone else” she said so quietly she wasn’t sure if Ruby would’ve heard her.

“Oh my God” that was the last thing Ruby was expecting Belle to say “who?” 

“That’s the bit I can’t tell you” Belle shook her head.

“It wasn’t Archie was it?” Ruby tried to joke. Archie was Ruby’s long term boyfriend; they had been together longer than Belle could remember.

“Of course not, I would never do that to you” Belle sounded a little offended that Ruby would think she would do that.

“Calm down I was joking” Ruby soothed.

“Sorry” Belle mumbled.

“So if it’s not Archie then who could be so bad that you can’t tell me?” Ruby urged.

“Ruby please just leave it” Belle cried.

“Belle please I’m worried about you” Ruby pulled her friend in for a hug.

“I can’t” Belle began to cry “no one will understand” 

“This is me you’re talking to” Ruby rubbed her friends back “whoever it is I won’t judge you”

“Gold” Belles muffled voice spoke.

“What?” Ruby didn’t hear her.

Belle sat up straight and took a deep breath “Gold, I kissed Mr Gold” she couldn’t look Ruby in the eye after her confession. The room stayed silent and Belle wondered if Ruby had even heard her, it was a good two minutes before Ruby spoke.

“Are you kidding me?” she yelled.

Belle stayed quiet, she knew what she had done was wrong, but she couldn’t stop thinking about it. About how his hands felt on her body, the way he tasted, it had felt so good.

“Belle this is Mr Gold we’re talking about” Ruby spoke to Belle like she was crazy. So much for not judging! Belle thought.

“He’s nothing like you described Rubes” Belle bristled.

“Well then enlighten me” Ruby shot back “because I can’t see it” 

“You wouldn’t” Belle muttered “he’s different with me, he’s been nothing but kind and gentle, we can talk for hours about literature and he actually listens when I talk” 

“But you’re dating his son” Ruby stated the obvious and Belle rolled her eyes.

“I’m well aware Rubes, he said it was a mistake and he sent me away” Belle looked down sadly “now I just feel embarrassed and guilty and I don’t want to see him or Will or anyone” 

“Oh Belle I’m sorry sweetie” Ruby hugged her “I’m not being very supportive am I? How about I go out and get us some wine and ice cream and we’ll have a girly sleep over like we used to when we were kids, accept this time it’ll be wine instead of chocolate milk” she laughed earning a smile from Belle. 

“That sounds perfect” Belle sniffed.

A couple of hours and two bottles of wine later Belle and Ruby were snuggled up in Belles bed watching some reality TV show, they were giggling and talking and having fun.

“So is Gold a good kisser?” Ruby asked suddenly.

“Ruby!” Belle smacked her friends shoulder and then buried her face in her hands as a blush rose up her cheeks.

“What?” Ruby giggled “it had to be asked” she heard a muffled reply come from behind Belles hands “what was that?”

Belle looked up “he’s a fantastic kisser” she said quietly and then smiled as she remembered that kiss again.

Ruby saw the smile on the smaller brunettes face “you really like him don’t you?” she queried.

“It doesn’t matter” Belle sighed “I’m dating Will, and even if I wasn’t, Cameron still wouldn’t want to be with me, it’s all just too messed up”

“Cameron?” Ruby asked.

“Mr Gold” Belle answered. 

“Wow I wouldn’t have guessed his name was Cameron” Ruby thought aloud.

“You’re focusing on the wrong bit there Rubes” Belle rolled her eyes.

“Sorry” Ruby mumbled “are you going to break up with Will?”

“You know I can’t” Belle cried and got out of the bed to stare out of her bedroom window.

“Oh come on Belles” Ruby said exasperated “so he knows your big secret, it doesn’t mean he can use it against you to make you stay with him, that’s just messed up”

“I can’t take that risk” Belle informed her “Gold and I was a onetime silly mistake and it won’t happen again. Will is who I am with and that’s the way it’s going to stay” she said adamantly even though the thought of being with Will and never getting to be with the man she knows she is falling for fills her heart with dread.

Ruby eyed Belle as she stood looking out of the apartment window at the pawn shop across the road, her heart broke for her friend “if you say so sweetie” she got up and hugged her friend from behind just as Belle completely broke down.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a bit of a filler chapter, i'm not too happy with it but hope you like it.

Cameron shuffled along the pavement on Monday morning; he was dragging his feet and leaning heavily on his cane after downing a bottle of scotch and falling asleep at his desk in his study the day before. He had locked himself away in there for most of that Sunday, only appearing when he needed to pee. The air was cold as he made his way towards his pawn shop which just made his leg ache even more. When he finally made it to his store he stopped to fish his keys out of his pocket and froze when he heard a door slam behind him, he chanced a look over his shoulder and his breath caught when he spotted Belle coming down the steps from her apartment. 

She hadn’t spotted him and he wondered whether he could just quickly duck inside his shop without her seeing him and avoid an uncomfortable scenario. But it was too late to make a move because as soon as her feet hit the pavement she looked up and saw him. She froze in place, her hand hovering inside her handbag as she was just about to retrieve the keys to the library.

Gold took a deep breath and lifted his hand in a sort of wave, and gave a slight nod of his head. Belle closed her eyes and Gold could see she was also taking a deep breath before she stood up straighter and waved back. She quickly turned away after and headed to the library door, walking much quicker than anyone in six inch heels should be able to do. 

Gold watched her go and then opened the door and headed inside. He would normally turn the sign on the door to open as soon as he got inside but he needed a few minutes to get his head straight. He hadn’t expected to see Belle so soon after ‘the incident’ on Saturday night – or was it Sunday morning? 

He knew they needed to talk about what happened but he was embarrassed by his behaviour and after spending all day thinking about it in Sunday he realised Belle must’ve been drunk from the party. That’s the only explanation he could think of for why she kissed him, she couldn’t really want him, she was young and beautiful and could have any man she wanted. He was old, and crippled and bitter. And the thought that she had been drunk made him feel guilty that he had taken advantage of her.

He finally collected himself and turned the sign to open, he hadn’t even walked back to the counter before he heard the bell above the door jingle signalling someone’s arrival.

“How can I help-” he began to say as he turned around but stopped when he saw who was stood there “you!” he growled.

“Hello sweetie” Zelena grinned.

“What can I do for you Miss Mills” Gold sighed. This was the last thing he needed this morning.

“I just wanted to have a little chat” she told him as she twirled a piece of a glass unicorn mobile that he had hanging up.

“Well I’m busy so if you don’t mind” he gestured toward the door and hoped she’d get the hint.

“That’s not very nice Gold” Zelena pouted.

“Well I’m not a very nice person” Gold stated “maybe you should go find a nice man”  
“Now now Gold remember what I said” Zelena sneered “I will tell your son exactly what you think of his girlfriend and I’m pretty sure you don’t want him to know all those naughty thoughts do you?”

“I told you before Miss Mills, you are insane” Gold hoped his voice wasn’t betraying him now “I do not fancy my sons girlfriend, Belle is a nice girl but that’s all I think of her” 

“I’m not blind Gold” Zelena moved closer to the counter “I saw the way you looked at her”

“I was having a nice conversation with her while Will chatted with you” Gold argued. 

“I don’t care what you say, I know what I saw” Zelena countered “and whether or not it’s true is irrelevant because I doubt you want me telling Will you fancy that little librarian”

Gold paused, she was right of course. Will would probably laugh in her face but it still wouldn’t be good for anyone if Will got even the slightest idea that something had happened between him and Belle. But he wasn’t about to be blackmailed either; he was Cameron Gold for fucks sake!!

“Tell him” Gold called her bluff.

“What?” Zelena’s grin faltered.

“I said tell him dearie” Gold plastered on a fake grin and hoped he wasn’t about to make a mistake “he will laugh in your face” 

“You don’t want me to tell him” for the first time Zelena didn’t sound confident.

“doesn’t matter” gold shrugged “I will not be blackmailed into taking a psycho like you out on a date, so go ahead and tell him, he won’t believe you anyway so what have I got to lose”

Zelena stood silent, her mouth opening and closing like a fish before she screamed and stomped her way out of the shop, the little bell rang violently as she slammed the door and Gold thought for a moment that it was going to fall from the wall. He let out the breath he didn’t know he had been holding and stood staring at the now closed door. He knew he should’ve taken the day off today, it wasn’t even 9.30am and he’d had enough.

He sighed and went into the back room, fixing things always helped his state of mind and the Nolan’s had brought in an antique Grandfather clock a few days prior for him to fix and restore. This little project should keep him going for a few days at least.

Belle sat in her office with her head in her hands, of all the people she could’ve seen this morning he was the last person she had wanted. She was embarrassed by what had happened between them and she wanted to hide forever. Belle hadn’t slept a wink after breaking down in Ruby’s arms; she’d lay awake staring at the ceiling while her friend snored beside her. Ruby had persuaded her that she needed to talk to Gold senior, however ashamed she may feel they needed to clear the air. It would be better than bumping into each other at the next family gathering and things being awkward between them, which would sure raise suspicion. 

She decided that she would pop over to the pawn shop on her lunch hour and see him, it would probably be better to have the conversation somewhere where no one will over hear them. Until then she had work to be getting on with, starting with trying to decide what book to read for Storytime that coming afternoon.

She had just started going through the children’s book collection when someone knocked on her door.

“Come in” she called out and looked up when the door opened. He smile dimmed a bit when she saw her boyfriend stood in front of her. She had wanted to get things straight with Cameron before she saw Will but fate was against her it seemed.

“You are alive then?” Will stood with his arms crossed over his chest. 

“What do you mean?” Belle asked. She knew what he meant; she hadn’t called him or answered any of his calls or messages since she walked out of his house on Sunday morning. 

“You walk out of my house after going off on one and then don’t have to decency to return my calls” Will raged “that’s what I mean!”

“Calm down Will, this is my place of work” Belle stated as calmly as she could and walked around Will to shut her office door to make sure no one was eavesdropping. The last thing she needed was Mayor Mills showing up and witnessing her domestic while she was meant to be working.

“I will not calm down” Will replied petulantly “I deserve to know why you haven’t bothered to return my calls”

“Look I’m sorry I didn’t call you back” she admitted “but I was going through some stuff and needed to think” 

“Going through what?” Will scoffed “what could you possibly have to worry about? Let me guess, you didn’t know what colour to dye your hair, personally I think blonde would suit you, or was it you don’t know what dress to wear to the ball in a few months” he laughed and Belle felt her blood boil.

“Get out!” she ordered. Will just looked her up and down and smiled.

“Aw did I touch a nerve” he gloated “I’ll see you tonight” he added as he did as she requested.

“Don’t count on it” Belle said just as he got to the other side of the door. He turned to say something to her comment but she just slammed the door in his face. She half expected him to storm back in but she heard him curse through the wood and then storm off. She stared at the now closed door for a couple of minutes while she tried to get her breathing back to normal before she sat back down at her desk. She wanted to cry, or scream or both, she wasn’t really sure but what she did know was that she needed to get out of her office. Maybe she would visit her father, Ashley would cover the library as they were never very busy on Mondays until Storytime.

She gathered up her coat and gloves and her bag and walked out of her office and over to Ashley who was restocking books in the fiction section.

“Hey Ashley” Belle greeted her friend “do you mind watching the library for a little while? I need to get out of here for a couple of hours”

“Sure that’s fine” Ashley smiled and nodded “I saw Will leave, he didn’t look too happy” 

“I’m sure he wasn’t” Belle muttered under her breath but then said out loud “don’t worry he’s fine, we just had a little disagreement that’s all”

“Ok then” Ashley acknowledged with a frown and went back to the pile of books she was working her way through. Belle was a little confused by Ashley’s tone but thought nothing more of it as she headed out. Her father’s shop was just round the corner from the library so it didn’t take her long to get there on foot, he was just outside loading up his van with the day’s deliveries when she arrived.

“Belle my girl” her father bellowed “this is a nice surprise” he enveloped her in a big bear hug when she reached him.

“Hey papa” she wrapped her arms tighter around him when he went to pull back.

“What’s wrong?” he asked immediately.

“Nothing” Belle mumbled into his chest. Maurice French was a big man, tall and heavy built and Belle was short and petite, she barely reached his shoulder when wearing her sky scraper heels.

Maurice gripped Belles shoulders lightly and pushed her back so he could see her eyes which were glistening with tears “tell me what’s wrong?” 

“I’m just having a really crappy couple of days papa that’s all, I needed a hug” Belle said. It wasn’t exactly a lie, she was having a bad few days, he just didn’t need to know the exact details. She also knew that her father loved Will but despised Mr Gold so he’s never understand what had transpired over the weekend.

“Oh sweetheart” he wrapped his arm around her shoulders “how about you come over tomorrow night? I’ll make you your favourite dinner” he offered.

“That would be nice” Belle smiled “thank you papa”

They continued chatting for a few more minutes until Mo had to start his deliveries, she bid him goodbye and started the walk back in the direction of the library. She spied the pawn shop across the street and decided it was now or never, if he had a customer she would just pretend to look at the antique books until he was alone. Her bravery wavered as she reached for the door handle; this was probably going to be the most embarrassing conversation of her life. The little bell jingles above her as she eventually walked in.

There was no sign of anyone in shop, not even Gold himself.

“Hello!” she called out.

“Be with you in a second” she heard his distinctive Scottish accent call back. She started to peruse the books while she waited and a moment later he appeared from behind the curtain. He stopped dead in his tracks when he saw it was her.

“Belle” he breathed. She was the last person he’d been expecting to see in his shop.

“Hi Mr Go – Cameron – Mr Gold” she stuttered and felt her face flame. He'd told her to call him Cameron but that was before the kiss so now she was unsure.

“Cameron is fine dearie” he told her.

“Ok” she whispered and then began to shuffle her feet, suddenly this didn’t seem like a good idea.

“Are you ok?” he asked quietly.

“Not really” she admitted “are you?”

“Not really” he sighed.

“Wow this is awkward” Belle attempted a joke and was pleased when Gold smiled slightly.

“Just a little” he agreed, he took a breath “do you want a cup of tea?” he offered and pointed to the back room.

“Yes please” she nodded. Maybe a cup of tea would calm her nerves. She followed him through the curtain to the back room and was shocked by what was back there. She thought the shop was magnificent but this is obviously where he kept the even more rare items. Gold busied himself making the tea while she explored the stock he had, the piece that caught her eye the most was the antique spinning wheel situated in the corner. 

“This is incredible” she said to no one in particular as she ran her fingers around the wheel.

“I've had that for years” Gold said as he placed their drinks on the desk. She startled when she heard his voice, she’d forgotten he was there. 

“It’s beautiful” she told him and then joined him at his desk. She picked up her cup and took a sip, her hand was shaking from her nerves and she struggled to keep a hold of her cup.

“I guess we need to talk” Gold finally said, Belle panicked suddenly and the cup slipped from her grasp landing on the edge of the table and falling to the floor with a clatter.

“Oh my god” she cried, when she knelt down to retrieve it she noticed it was chipped “I'm so sorry, it’s….. it’s chipped”

Gold looked down at her, he could see the tears in her eyes “it’s just a cup” he told her and she sighed with relief. He helped her up and grabbed another cup and poured her a fresh cup “try not to drop this one” he joked and she laughed tearfully.

“I'm sorry for what happened” they both said in unison and then laughed.

“You go first” she said to Gold.

“I'm sorry about what happened” he confessed “you were drunk and I took advantage”

Belle was surprised by his admission “you didn’t take advantage” she declared.

“Of course I did” he exclaimed “you are young and beautiful and you'd had a few to drink”

“I kissed you” she reminded him. She couldn’t understand why he would blame himself when she was the one who had gone back into the kitchen and she had been the one to kiss him.

“Well like I said you were drunk, you weren't making good decisions” he muttered more to himself but Belle heard him.

“I wasn’t that drunk Cameron” Belle defended her actions. He was making it sound like whenever she got drunk she would just throw herself at the nearest available man. Up until Saturday night she had been one hundred percent faithful to Will – although she had her suspicions that Will had not done the same for her.

“Look I understand Belle” Cameron continued to ignore her protests.

“No I don’t think you do” Belle shot back “I wanted to kiss you”

Cameron’s head shot up at her admission, his brow furrowed as he tried to understand how she could possibly have wanted to kiss him. He had spent the better part of Sunday telling himself that it was his fault, that somehow he must have forced himself on her because no way on earth would a beautiful creature like Belle would want him. His ex-wife – Milah – had made it clear on many occasions that no woman – including herself – would fancy him. 

“You can’t mean that” he shook his head “no one could ever want me”

“Have you seen you?” Belle said gently. She was beginning to understand why he was talking this way, Will had mentioned once how his mother had always put his father down and destroyed his confidence in himself.

Gold just scoffed in reply.

“look I know you don’t believe me but I did want to kiss you” Belle began to explain “I had wanted to ever since that first night I met you, I couldn’t stop thinking about you and I knew it was wrong but I couldn’t help it, I even made an excuse the next morning to come and see you here remember?” she stopped and he nodded “anyway after that I swore I needed to forget you, it wasn’t fair to Will and I knew you would never feel the same but then I saw you at Storytime and then again at Henry's party and you were kind and sweet and funny and you actually listened when I talked about literature and I found myself thinking about you more and more until I saw you in the kitchen on Saturday night and maybe it was the alcohol that made me do what I did but it doesn’t mean I didn’t want to” she was breathing heavy when she finished her little speech.

Cameron stood dumbstruck.

“And I know nothing can happen, you were right to send me away, but I just needed you to know that I take full responsibility for what happened, you have nothing to feel guilty for” she was babbling now.

“Belle stop” Cameron held up a hand to stop her before she ran out of breath and passed out “for the record, I haven't been able to stop thinking about you either since that first night, and I do believe what you say but I do still feel guilty, more so about Will” he explained “he's my son and I love him, and he's going through some stuff at the moment and I need to be there for him as much as he wants me”

Belle nodded along.

“Can we be friends?” she asked tentatively “or is that too weird?”

“You really want to be friends with this old man?” Gold gestured to himself.

“Will you stop that” she admonished “and yes I do, I haven't got much in common with anyone in this town, it would be nice to have someone to talk to about books and travel and things like that” she ventured.

“Well I think I would like to be your friend” Gold agreed “but it might be best if you don’t mention it to Will, I doubt he’d understand why you want to hang out with his dad” he smiled.

“Yeah you might be right” she concurred. They stood in silence sipping on their drinks then until Belle saw the time “I better be getting back to the library”

“Ok” he nodded “thank you for coming by Belle, I'm glad we cleared the air”

“Me too” Belle acquiesced. She collected her coat and bag and walked back out into the shop through the curtain, Cameron followed close behind “I’ll see you soon Cameron”

“See you soon Belle” he replied. He watched her head out of the door and across the road to the library; once she was out of sight he leant back against the counter and looked up at the clock. It had just turned midday and he felt like he had been put through the ringer. Was it too early for a drink??


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was a little rushed as had a busy week so i apologise for any spelling mistakes etc. enjoy!

A few days later Belle was walking down the street on her way to Granny’s when she saw Will coming in the opposite direction. She hadn’t spoken to him since she had thrown him out of her office on Monday and to be honest she didn’t really want to see him now but he couldn’t be avoided. He looked sheepish as he approached her.

“Hi Belles” he looked down at the ground unable to meet her eyes.

“Hi Will” she replied curtly.

He finally looked up at her and wished he hadn’t when he met her furious gaze “I.... I’m sorry for what I said the other day”

“You’re always sorry Will” Belle crossed her arms across her chest “nothing ever changes though” 

“I’ve been going through some stuff” he admitted “but I know I shouldn’t take it out on you”

“Why can’t you talk to me?” Belle put her hand on his shoulder “or your father or Neal”

“I can’t talk to them” Will shook his head.

“Talk to me then” she said “we used to tell each other everything a couple of months ago” 

“How about tonight?” Will suggested “at the Rabbit Hole?”

“No” Belle said immediately “if you want to talk we do it somewhere quiet away from alcohol” she stopped to think for a minute “my place?” 

Will wanted to go to the bar, he always wanted to go there but Belle wanted him to be serious and sober for a change. His friends would be at the bar and they’d never be able to talk.

“Fine” Will muttered. He had hoped that if they met at the club she wouldn’t force him to talk.

“I'm late for lunch with Ruby, I’ll see you tonight” she smiled and kissed his cheek before carrying on to the diner, she only had an hour off from the library so needed to hurry. 

Just as she was entering Granny’s she saw a flyer taped to the window for a special showing of Casablanca at the outdoor cinema in the park. She took a note of the time and saw  
that it was that coming Saturday evening. Maybe she could persuade Will to take her.

Ruby was just starting her lunch break when Belle entered.

“Perfect timing” Ruby smiled and held up two plates of burger and fries.

“Thanks Rubes” Belle grabbed the two ice teas off the counter and joined her friend in the booth.

“So have you spoken to Will yet?” Ruby mumbled through a mouthful of burger.

“About five minutes ago” Belle replied “I bumped into him on my way here”

“Did the jerk apologise?” Ruby asked.

“Yeah” Belle nodded “he’s coming over to mine to talk tonight”

“Don’t let him give you anymore grief Belle” Ruby ordered. She loved her best friend dearly but she knew she was far too forgiving for her own good sometimes.

“I won’t” Belle vowed and carried on eating her fries. Soon they were finished and Belle was heading back to work. It was a long afternoon, made worse by Ashley crying over some mystery man she was dating, Belle barely paid attention.

Soon it was time to head home and wait for Will to come over, they hadn’t agreed a specific time so she cleaned up a bit, then showered and changed and sat down on her couch to wait. She was almost dozing off when the doorbell rang, Belle glanced at the clock on her way to the door, it was 9.30pm and she was angry.

Belle pulled the door open and found Will leaning heavily against the door frame, he grinned at her.

“Hello Belles” he slurred and Belle had to step back at the stench of alcohol that came off his breath.

“You were supposed to be here hours ago” she refused to let him in when he went to make a love to enter.

“We never said a time” he replied with a smug grin that Belle wanted to slap off his face.

“You are unbelievable” she yelled and pushed the door closed in his face. She stood leaning against it with her eyes closed as Will started banging loudly.

“Let me in Belles” he sing songed “you know you want to” 

She remained silent as she tried to stop the tears from falling.

“Belle please?” he started to plead obviously realising he’d pissed her off again “Ok I’m sorry, I should’ve come over earlier but I was afraid”

Belle hesitated but said quietly “afraid of what?” 

She could hear Will breathing on the other side of the door so knew he hadn’t left although he remained silent, it was a few minutes before he replied “that I’ll be looked at differently if people find out the truth” 

Belle was confused at his statement so she turned and opened the door a couple of inches; she saw the tears in his eyes.  
“What are you talking about?” she questioned.

“Can I please come in?” Will pleaded “I’ll tell you I promise”

Belle hesitated, he was drunk and she was unsure what his mood was going to be, she eventually pushed the door open to allow him entry. He muttered a ‘thank you’ as he walked passed her and entered her living area. He kicked off his boots and sat down on her couch and Belle just stood in the doorway, she felt uneasy and wasn’t sure why.

“Aren’t you coming in?” Will yelled to her. She steeled her nerves and went in and sat on the chair. She looked at him expectantly, Will rolled his eyes, he really didn’t want to have this conversation.

“If you’re not going to talk then get out” Belle pointed toward the door.

“Ok fine” Will huffed and then took a deep breath “my mom got in contact recently”

“Really?” Belle hadn’t been expecting that.

“Yeah, apparently she tried to ring but my dad refused to let her speak to me or Neal, bastard never even gave me the choice” he muttered the last part. Belle looked down at her clasped hands, she wanted to defend Cameron but knew that it might cause some suspicion “anyway I got a letter from her, she told me she’s living in Ireland with her husband Killian Jones, he’s some sort of sailor in the Navy, she said she’d wanted to get in contact for a while but didn’t know how I would react, I was always closer to my mom than Neal was, he was more dad’s favourite. At least now I know why” he stopped and Belle thought he wasn’t going to continue “turns out my dad isn’t my dad” 

“Oh my god” Belle exclaimed. No wonder he'd not been himself lately.

“Yeah I know” Will rubbed his hand over his face “my mom thought I should know that Killian is my dad”

“Why now?” she asked.

“I don’t know” he shrugged “she said she wanted to be a family”

“What has your dad said?” Belle sat forward in her chair and reached for Wills hand, he looked down and snatched his hand away from her.

“He doesn’t know I know” Will muttered “and I intend to keep it that way”

“You need to talk to him Will” Belle urged “he might be able to help you understand”

“I don’t want to talk to him” he replied petulantly “he’s lied to me my entire life”

“He raised you when you're mother left” Belle couldn’t stop herself from defending Cameron “he didn’t have to do that”

“Why are you defending him?” Will was getting angry, he stood from the couch and started pacing “you don’t know anything”

“Will calm down” Belle stood and backed away from Will slightly. She knew he had been drinking and although he had never been violent with her before it didn’t mean that he wouldn’t when he was angry and drunk “I was just trying to say that maybe your dad had his reasons for not telling you”

“He’s not my dad!” Will raged “and I'm not talking to him about this, all I want is to not think about it”

“You can’t ignore it forever Will” Belle stated. 

“Yeah well that’s my choice” Will said as he walked into Belles kitchen and started opening cupboards “don’t you have anything decent to drink around here?”

“You don’t need any more to drink Will” Belle stood in the doorway. Will stopped to look at her; rage was etched across his face.

“What I need is for you to stop telling me what to do” he sneered.

“Fine then leave” Belle stood back and pointed to the door, Will just laughed thinking she was joking “I'm not kidding Will, get out”

“Fine” Will huffed and shoved passed Belle “just make sure you don’t tell anyone what I've told you tonight”

“Yeah” Belle murmured not really listening.

“I mean it Belles” Will growled “you keep my secret just like I keep yours”

Belles head shot up at his statement “what the hell is that supposed to mean?”

“it means that I've kept your secret for months so I expect the same from you” Will stated “come on Belles, I don’t want to keep fighting, you trusted me with what you told me about Gaston, I'm just asking you do the same for me about my dad”

Belle stared at Will for a moment, she couldn’t decide if he was trying to blackmail her or being sincere. All she did know was she wanted him to leave so she could think.  
“Ok” she muttered.

“Thank you” Will leaned in and kissed her on the cheek and she tried not to flinch away at his touch. She gave a pained smile “I need a drink; you want to come to the bar?”

“No you go ahead, I'm tired, and I think I’ll get an early night” Belle said.

Will just nodded and walked out, Belle knew he wouldn’t even offer to stay, she had wanted to ask him about going out on Saturday to the movie in the park but she decided she would be happier going alone, it wasn’t really Wills kind of thing anyway. She was beginning to wonder if they actually had anything in common.

After Will had left Belle sat on the couch and buried her head in her hands, she couldn’t take much more of being with Will but she was still unsure as to whether he would keep the secret she had shared with him. She wished she had never told him, they had just begun to start dating although they had known each other for years and they’d had a few to drink one night and were walking through the park. Will had been sweet and caring back then – was it only a few months ago? – And they had been sharing intimate details of their lives. Belle had only ever confided in Ruby about what had happened to her ex-boyfriend from college and she somehow felt herself wanting to share with Will as well.

Belle had been dating Gaston Hunter all the way through college and in their last year they had found a little apartment together just off campus, Belle had been so in love but things soon became rough for the pair. Gaston’s workload became hard for him to handle and he became more and more stressed and moody. One night it had all come to a head for the pair and they had a massive blow out resulting in Belle throwing Gaston out of their home. He’d come home steaming drunk and had started insulting her and accusing her of all sorts including sleeping with her professor. He had apologised profusely but she had told him to leave. 

She had been left devastated the next morning when the cops had shown up on her doorstep to tell her Gaston had died; he had gotten in his car after she had kicked him out and although he had been drunk he had driven off and straight into the Welcome to Storybrooke sign on the edge of town. He had been killed instantly. Belle had blamed herself ever since that day, she should’ve taken his keys knowing he was drunk, or she should’ve told him to go to bed and sleep it off instead of kicking him out. She was the reason Gaston was dead! 

Belle swiped at the tears that had fallen while she thought about Gaston, the guilt still ate her up inside. She had moved back to Storybrooke not long after and no one knew what had happened, one night she had broken down and told Ruby and then of course she had thought she could tell Will about her past that was a decision she was now regretting. 

A couple of days later on Saturday night Gold found himself stood outside the Storybrooke Park, he had seen a flyer posted on his store window and had found himself interested in going to the showing of Casablanca. It was one of his favourite movies and he needed to get out of the house. Things with Will had become more and more strained and they could barely be in the same room as one another. He knew why Will was angry with him but Will hadn't come out and told him yet so he had to wait. After the unexpected phone call from Milah he knew it wouldn’t be long before she found a way to contact his sons and it was about a week after the call that Wills attitude towards him had changed and he had begun drinking, it didn’t take a genius to work out that she had managed to tell him the truth about his parentage.

Gold limped into the park and took note of all the couples spread out on blankets on the small patch of grass, maybe this hadn't been a good idea. He looked around and saw a fallen tree at the back of the crowd and decided that would be a better place for him to sit, he didn’t think sitting on the ground would be good for his leg anyway. He carried his small blanket and thermos over to the log and draped it across before taking a seat.

He sat and watched the people milling about hoping no one saw him and came over to talk to him, he heard his cell phone chime in his pocket signalling a text. He smiled when he saw Belles name on the screen.

I DIDN’T HAVE YOU PEGGED AS A CASABLANCA FAN!

He looked at the screen confused before it dawned on him, she was there too! He looked up and scanned the crowd before his eyes landed on her. She was looking at him with an amused smile and he waved awkwardly. They had agreed to be friends and had exchanged numbers a couple of days later when he had gone into the library to return a book but he still found himself feeling awkward around her after their kiss, and he still fancied her, he couldn’t help it. 

His fingers hesitated over the buttons as he tried to come up with a witty reply.

OF ALL THE OUTDOOR CINEMAS, IN ALL THE TOWNS, IN ALL THE WORLD, YOU HAD TO WALK INTO MINE!

He looked up as he pressed send and he smiled when he saw her giggle down at her phone, the light from her screen lighting up her face. She looked up and caught his eye and gave him a thumb up for his reply. He watched as she put her phone back in her purse and he felt disappointed that she wasn’t going to continue talking to him until he saw her stand up and grab her blanket and bag and start walking in his direction.

“Hello Cameron” Belle smiled.

“Hello Belle” Gold acknowledged.

“Do you mind if I join you?” she pointed to the empty spot next to him on the tree.

“Be my guest” he gestured for her to take a seat and shifted over slightly to make more room. When she was comfy he spoke again “wouldn’t you rather be sat with your friends?”

“I am sat with my friend remember” she joked and nudged him with her shoulder before falling quiet “I don’t really know anyone that well, and there was no way Will would come to this so I'm just here on my own, I was quite glad to spot you”

“Well I'm glad of the company” Gold told her sincerely.

“So you're a Casablanca fan then?” Belle asked going back to her first text message.

Gold smiled as he considered his response “yes, my aunts took me to see it when I was a lad back in Scotland”

“That’s lovely” Belle smiled “my mother brought me to see this when I was thirteen, it was on at an outdoor cinema then too” she sighed wistfully at the thought of her mother.

“When did you lose her?” Gold asked

“When I was sixteen” she sniffed “cancer”. She didn’t need to say any more than that, that word was enough of an explanation on its own.

Gold put his hand on her shoulder and gave it a squeeze “I'm sorry for your loss”

“Thank you, its been years but it still hurts” she whispered and swiped away a stray tear “I bet you're glad I came over here now aren't you?” she gave a watery smile.

“I can think of worse people to be sat here with” he said without thinking. As the words left his mouth he was reminded of the night they kissed. He had said similar words then and now he couldn’t get the image out of his head of her lips on his, of her arms around his neck, the soft little sigh she made as his hands gripped her hips-

“Cameron?” Belle’s voice brought him back to reality.

“Sorry” he coughed “I zoned out”

Belle just laughed, she knew where his mind had gone because that is exactly where her mind had gone “the movie is starting” she pointed to the screen where the opening credits were just beginning to show. They sat in silence both engrossed in the film until about half way through when Gold glanced over at Belle and saw her shiver slightly. She had her coat wrapped around her but the weather had dropped colder in the last hour. He stood and lifted the blanket he had been sat on and wrapped it around her shoulders. She looked at him and smiled softly.

“Thank you” she pulled it tighter as he sat back down next to her, the rough bark now more uncomfortable without his blanket to sit on but it was worth it to know she was now warm.

An hour later the end credits began to roll and people began to amble out of the park, Gold and Belle hung back.

“I’ll walk you home” he told her and held his hand up to stop her protest “I've said it before I'm not letting you get eaten by a wolf”

She laughed at his statement as she remembered him saying that on the first night she met him “ok well thank you”

They slowly walked down the street towards her apartment above the library, they chatted about the movie and about work, and the walk took a little longer than it usually should as Golds leg was giving him hell after sitting in the cold for so long. Belle never mentioned it, she just adjusted her pace accordingly for which Gold was grateful.

They eventually reached the library and they found themselves stood at the bottom of the stairs which reminded them of the last time Gold walked her home.

“Thank you for walking me back” Belle wanted to kiss him on the cheek but thought better of it. It was still quite early and there were a few people still milling about the streets. 

“You’re very welcome Belle” Gold nodded. He hated how awkward he felt around her, she had wanted to be friends with him and he couldn’t stop thinking about kissing her. He was so going to hell.

“Ok” Belle felt equally as awkward “see you soon?” she had meant for that to come out as a statement and blushed when it came out as a question. She wanted to know when she would see him again, she was going to hell!

Gold nodded, he hoped he could see her but knew he shouldn’t. Belle grinned and headed up the stairs, pulling her keys out of her bag as she went. Gold watched as she went and then walked off as she reached the top; Belle turned and watched him limp up the street. She was falling for him and she couldn’t stop herself. Heaving a heavy sigh she put the key in the door and walked inside just as she heard her landline starting to ring. She raced to the device and answered.

“Hello”

“Is this Miss Belle French?” she heard a man ask her.

“Yes speaking” Belle replied.

“This is Doctor Whale from Storybrooke Memorial Hospital, I'm afraid your father was brought in earlier tonight and you are listed as his emergency contact”

“Oh my god” the phone slipped from Belles grasp.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Smut warning. Never written anything like this before so sorry if not very good lol!

Belle stood at the bottom of the long path and stared up at the salmon coloured house she hadn't been to since the night she had kissed Cameron. Was that only a week ago? She hadn't seen Will since the night at her apartment when he told her about the letter from his mother. But now she needed someone, she had received a devastating phone call and had rushed to the hospital. She had been there all night and it was now the early hours of Sunday morning. She could pretend she was here to seek comfort from her boyfriend but deep down she knew she’d rather the elder Gold be the one to hug her and tell her it was going to all be ok. 

She took a deep breath and walked up the steps and knocked the door gently. She wished the tears would stop, she didn’t want to look a complete wreck but they just wouldn’t stop. She was about to knock again when she heard the tell-tale sign that Gold was about the answer, the clacking of his cane on the laminate flooring being a dead giveaway. He swung open the door and was stunned to see Belle stood there, shivering in the cold, having forgotten her coat when she had numbly bolted out of her home and her face was wet with tears.

“Belle?” Gold whispered sleepily “come in here, you look freezing” he grabbed her hand and pulled her towards the living room “what happened?” he asked as he led her to the sofa and wrapped a blanket around her shoulders. He put the lamp on to create a soft glow in the room as it was still dark outside.

She didn’t reply, still in shock from the events of the evening. Gold left to get her a hot drink, hoping she would talk once she was warm again. He was worried about her, but also wondering why she would come to his house when she was upset, Will was away at a stag do for the weekend, she must know that. 

He made his way back to the living room; Belle hadn’t moved apart from to pull the blanket a bit tighter around her. He sat next to her and handed her the mug.

“Belle what happened sweetheart?” he asked again, not worrying too much about the endearment that slipped out.

“I should- should talk to W-Will” she stuttered out between sobs.

Gold looked confused, she didn’t know “Will isn’t here, he’s in Boston for the weekend, and he’s not back until Monday” 

Belle looked confused, why didn’t he tell her, although she shouldn’t be surprised “oh” was all she could manage to reply. 

“You can talk to me you know” he said gently, somehow his Scottish brogue was thicker when he spoke like that, it made Belle shiver.

“My dad had a- he had a heart attack” she burst into full blown tears then. She’d not said it out loud until that point.

“Oh Belle” Gold wrapped his arm around her and pulled her close, letting her cry into his chest. When he was sure she’d calmed enough to carry on he loosened his grip.

“I got a phone call just after you left, it was Doctor Whale, he told me my dad had been brought in, a customer had found him on the floor in his flower shop, luckily he hadn’t been there long, otherwise who knows......” she let that sentence end itself.

“Is he going to be ok?” Gold asked.

“They think so, it’s still early days but the doctors apparently said it was only a minor attack so should make a full recovery” Belle replied “I can’t lose my papa” she cried again and leaned into Cam.

“You won’t” he vowed. He leaned back on the sofa and she kept her head on his chest, both sat in silence for a while, neither wanting to disrupt the quiet. He was stroking her hair absentmindedly, not really knowing what he was doing. 

She sat up abruptly “I shouldn’t have come here, I’m sorry” she went to stand up but Gold grabbed her hand. 

“Why did you?” he asked. He needed to know. He knew they were friends but surely she would've wanted to speak to Ruby or Emma.

“I told you, to talk to Will” she defended even though she knew he could tell she was lying.

“He honestly didn’t tell you he was away this weekend?” he asked dumbfounded.

“He probably did, I just forgot” Belle lied again. He hadn’t bothered to tell her, she honestly thought he’d probably just be at the bar tonight, she’d wanted comfort from Cam but couldn’t tell him that. They were friends but that was it.

“Yeah maybe that’s it” Gold mumbled. He knew she was lying; his son hadn’t bothered to tell her. He wonders sometimes how he could’ve raised two very different boys “are you going back to the hospital?” he asked needing to get off the subject of Will. Not that the subject of her father was any better. 

“no Whale said he’ll be out of it for a while so sent me home for some rest” she said sadly. A few moments went by before she spoke again “I should go”

“You sure?” Cam asked worriedly, he was worried about her. 

“Yeah” Belle sighed “me and you here alone together, didn’t end too well last time” she attempted a laugh but it was forced. 

Cam smiled, and stood when she did “have you got someone you can talk to?” 

“I suppose I could go see Emma or maybe Ruby” Belle pondered. She walked to the door with Gold close behind her, she didn’t want to leave, she wanted to stay curled up with him on the sofa with him stroking her hair but she knew he didn’t want her there. 

Deciding to be just a little bit brave she turned to him and reached up on her tiptoes to place the softest of kisses on his cheek “thank you” she murmured.

Gold watched as she turned to walk away, the last shred of his self-control slipped away. He reached out and grabbed her arm and pulled her back to him, his lips immediately finding hers. She didn’t hesitate to kiss him back, immediately she put her arms around his neck, his hands were on her back, caressing her. His lips left hers to trail kisses down her throat, her legs went weak and they stumbled back into the door that she was about to exit through. 

“Cam” she moaned and he came back to her lips to place a gentle kiss there before pulling away.

“Belle” he said her name in a whisper.

“Kiss me again” she pleaded “I need you” 

He should stop this, she was upset and not thinking clearly but he was a coward and he needed her. 

“We should move away from the door” he mumbled against her lips. She only nodded, not wanting to break away from him. 

He moved his hands lower to the backs of her thighs and hoisted her up so her legs were around his waist, his leg was going to give him hell tomorrow but he didn’t care, she kept her arms securely around his neck as she planted kisses on his throat, earning a growl when she nipped at a particularly sensitive spot, he made it to the couch and lay her down gently and covered her with his body. He lay in between her legs and brought his mouth back to hers, keeping most of his weight on his forearms so as not to crush her. 

“Cam” she panted his name and wrapped her legs around him, she could feel his growing erection against her core.

“God Belle” he was so hard for her it felt like torture.

“I need you” she begged again “please”

The ‘please’ was his complete undoing, they could’ve stopped at this point, could’ve put it down to Belle being upset and him being too weak to resist but it was no use. He wanted her and she wanted him, it was that simple. Tomorrow they could deal with the ramifications of their actions. 

He stood up suddenly, earning a whine from Belle. He grabbed her hand and pulled her up; he placed a playful kiss on her nose making her pout adorably.

“If we are going to do this, we’re going to go upstairs. You deserve more than a quickie on the couch” he told her.

Belle held his hand and followed behind him and up the stairs; a quick pang of guilt hit her as they passed Wills room on the ground floor. Gold saw the fleeting look on her face and stopped.

“We don’t have to do this” he was giving her an out, she knew it, he didn’t want her to regret anything tomorrow. 

She didn’t reply, instead she pushed him against the wall, making some of the photos that were hanging there wobble on their hooks.

“I want you” she whispered against his lips and pulled on his hand then to lead him to his bedroom. She turned and cupped his face and kissed him as he closed the door behind him. Belle brought her hands to the hem on his t shirt, hesitating for a moment before tugging it up; he helped get the garment over his head and threw it to the side. Belle took a moment to study his chest, he didn’t have a hard body but he was in good shape, he didn’t have chest hair and Belle leaned forward to kiss just over his heart, which was beating ten to the dozen under her gaze. She kissed her way back up along his throat. His hands went to her shirt and pulled it up and off her body, leaving her in her purple lacy bra and jeans. 

“So beautiful” he was in awe of her, she was just so extraordinary.

She kissed him harder this time and he walked her backwards until the backs of her knees came into contact with the bed and she sat down on the edge. She broke away long enough to shuffle further back onto the mattress and he followed. Her hands were in his hair and she marvelled at how soft it was, while his hand came up to cup her breast, squeezing gently.

Belle arched her back hoping he would get the hint and remove the lacy item of clothing; he did as she wanted and reached behind her to unhook the clasp and he pulled it away from her body. Before long all their clothes were shed and she was writhing beneath him, he was struggling to maintain control of himself.

“Cam” she breathed “please” she didn’t know what she was begging for, for him to continue or for him to be inside her.

He ran his hand up the inside of her thigh until it reached the one place she was aching for him, when his fingers came into contact with the small bundle of nerves she yelped in surprise, she was so sensitive after all the foreplay.

“You’re so wet” he growled in her ear.

She panted and moaned when his finger ran up and down her slit “oh God Cam”

“I’ll give you whatever you want sweetheart’ he whispered.

“I need to feel you” she pleaded. He didn’t hesitate and wrapped his hand around his now achingly hard cock and placed it at her entrance.

“You sure?” he needed one more reassurance from her. She responded by grabbing his face and kissing him..... Hard and she moved her hips up to start taking him all in. His hips moved to meet hers and soon he was fully sheathed inside her.

“Fuck” Gold groaned and Belle giggled “something funny” he raised an eyebrow at her and she giggled again.

“I’ve never heard you swear” her body shook with laughter. The times she had seen him he had always been so straight laced and well spoken.

“Belle if you don’t stop laughing this isn’t going to last long” he whispered huskily. The vibrations of her laughter were killing him.

She kissed him then and mumbled ‘sorry’ against his lips. His hips began to move then, slowly at first as he savoured the feel of her around him. He held her one hand above her head on the mattress while her other hand gripped his hair

“Faster, please” Belle needed more; he sped up his thrusts making her scream his name “Cam!”

“Belle” he moaned her name as he felt her walls clenching around his member, he reached one hand between them and rubbed circles around her already sensitive bundle. She came undone the moment his fingers touched her.

“Yes.... oh God...... Cameron!” she came hard, stars burst behind her eyes and she couldn’t breathe as she clung to him for dear life. A few short thrusts later and Gold followed her over the edge, breathing hard into her neck as he came inside her.

The both breathed heavily; a thin sheen of sweat covered both of their bodies as they lay on Golds bed, neither wanting to disentangle from each other. Eventually Gold rolled off Belle but didn’t move far, he lay next to her and she rolled onto her side to rest her head on his chest. His heart was still beating a fast rhythm.

“That was amazing” Belle said quietly, not wanting to disturb the mood. 

“You are amazing” he leaned down and placed a kiss on the top of her head and continued to stroke her hair. A few minutes passed before she lifted her eyes to meet his.

“What are we going to do?” she didn’t want to bring it up, but it was a subject they couldn’t avoid. 

He sat up a little but Belle didn’t move away and he kept his arm around her “what do you want to do?” he asked, he worried that she was going to want to walk away and pretend nothing happened. 

“I want to be with you” she stroked his cheek and he placed a soft kiss on the inside of her wrist. 

“You know this isn’t going to be easy” he stated.

“I don’t care” Belle told him defiantly “I don’t want to hurt Will but I’m not happy with him, I’m sorry I know he’s your son but he didn’t even tell me he was going away this weekend” 

“I kind of guessed he didn’t but I didn’t want to say anything” Gold muttered. He would never understand how Will could treat Belle the way he does. He knew Will was going through some stuff at the moment which he may or may not have confided in Belle but it didn’t excuse treating Belle horribly. 

“We won’t be able to be together right away” she said breaking him out of his thoughts “we couldn’t do that to him”

“I know sweetheart” Gold nodded “he’s my son and I don’t want to lose him, if he found out about this I don’t know what he would do”

“So we have to keep us secret” she half asked half stated “once I’ve broken up with him, we need to give it enough time for him to be ok with us”. She didn’t know how she was going to end things and she needed to tell the Cameron the truth about why it was difficult for her to end things but that was a conversation for another time.

“I’m not sure he’ll ever be ok with us Belle” Gold pointed out and she looked down sadly, he tipped her chin up and looked deep into her eyes “but he’ll have to get over it” he smiled at her and kissed her nose playfully.

She kissed his lips gently and he pressed harder deepening it, she threw her one leg over his as the kiss grew more urgent. She needed him again, she wasn’t sure if she’d ever get enough of this man now she had got him. His hands ran up her thighs, heading for that sacred spot when-

“Papa?!”

Belle broke away suddenly looking at Cam with wide eyes

“Did you hear that?” she asked. 

“Hear what?” Gold replied and went to kiss her neck

“PAPA?!” 

He pulled away then and caught Belles stunned eyes.

“That!” she whispered as the voice got louder.

“It’s Bae” he scrambled out from underneath her and looked for his boxers. Once he’d managed to get them on he poked his head out of the door, Neal was just coming up the stairs in search of him.

“Bae?” Gold tried to sound nonchalant “what are you doing here so early?”

“I needed to talk to you” Bae replied, not seeming to sense anything wrong with his father.

“Ok well I've just got up” Gold lied “I’ll meet you downstairs in a few minutes”

“Ok pops” Bae agreed and headed back down the stairs. Cam watched him go and when he was sure Bae was out of ear shot, he closed the door and turned back to Belle. She was now looking at him like she either wanted to laugh or cry, he wasn’t sure. His unasked question was soon answered when she burst out laughing, trying so hard to muffle the noise behind her hand so Bae wouldn’t hear her. 

“You think this is funny?” he couldn’t help but chuckle at her, her smile was infectious. 

“No” her body was still shaking as he stalked towards her.

“Oh what am I going to do with you?” he whispered huskily making her laughter stop and the lust take over. He kissed down her neck and she leaned back into the pillows as he leaned over her. Abruptly he pulled away from her with a smug grin on his face.

“I’ve got to go” he grinned.

“That was just mean” she pouted.

“Let me get rid of Bae as quick as possible and then I’ll finish what I started” he said with a wink “I’m sorry you’re going to be stuck up here though, I hate that we have to hide away”

“It won’t be forever” she sat up on her knees behind him and wrapped her arms around him as he sat on the edge of the bed to throw some trousers on.

“No it won’t” he vowed and turned his head just enough to give her a parting kiss “I’ll try not to be too long, there’s books over there” he pointed to the shelves by the window “if you get bored”

Belle looked over at the books excitedly; she was definitely going to have to peruse his collection. She let out a yawn as she watched Cameron leave the room, the events of the night were definitely beginning to take their toll on her now and she was exhausted. She felt a pang of guilt as she realised she hadn't thought of her father and the fact that she had been happy with Cameron. 

Cameron trudged down the stairs, all the while thinking of Belle, naked, in his bed. He hoped that what Bae needed to talk about didn’t take too long, he was anxious to get back to her.

“Sorry about that” Gold said as he walked into the kitchen and found Bae helping himself to a cup of coffee.

“Its fine” Bae replied “want one?” he gestured to the kettle. Gold shook his head no.

“So what’s wrong?” Gold asked eager to get this conversation started...... and finished.

Bae sighed “it’s Will”

“What’s he done now?” Gold asked exasperated.

“He called me last night, well early this morning in actual fact” Bae started “he was drunk and rambling something about me not being his real brother, and something to do with a letter from mom, and it’s no wonder you loved me more than him” 

“That’s ridiculous” Gold interrupted.

“That’s what I said” Bae agreed “but he just kept mouthing off until eventually I hung up on him”

“That was probably for the best” Gold nodded.

“Do you have any idea what he was on about?” Bae asked “why he would think that and do you know anything about a letter from mom?” 

Gold sighed and raked a hand through his hair, this wasn’t going to be a quick and easy conversation like he had hoped, and he just hoped Belle would be ok stuck upstairs, but Bae deserved the truth.

“Yes I do know” Gold replied and Bae raised his eyebrows for him to continue “a few weeks ago you’re mother phoned”

“After all this time?” Bae raged.

“Yeah that was pretty much my reaction, although I may have used a couple of swear words” he tried to lighten the situation “anyway she called and wanted to speak to you and Will. Obviously I told her you don’t live here anymore, and when she asked to speak to Will and I refused” he took a deep breath knowing the hard part was coming up “and then about a week later Will got a letter from her”

“What did it say?” Bae asked quietly, he had a horrible feeling he knew what his father was about to say.

“She told Will that I’m not his father” Gold said sadly “Will is understandably upset, and nothing I say is helping him, he feels like his whole life has been a lie and somehow it’s my fault”

“You already knew didn’t you?” Bae questioned, again already knowing the answer. Gold nodded. 

“I’ve known since Milah told me she was so pregnant” Gold said.

“Why did you stay with her?” Bae asked perplexed.

“For you” His father replied simply “I wasn’t going to leave you and she basically said if I left then she’d make sure I never saw you again. She didn’t want the scandal getting out that she was pregnant by a fling so she told everyone that Will was mine. I didn’t know until a couple of years later that she was still seeing the guy that got her pregnant. I grew to love Will like I love you, and then Milah ran off with that bastard and left you both with me, I didn’t think he’d ever need to know the truth. I raised him, I’m his father in every way that matters but he doesn’t see it that way” 

“Wow” was all Bae could say to that. He knew his father had struggled at first with being a single father but he’d would never have guessed that he had also been raising a son he knew wasn’t biologically his.

“And before it even enters your head, you are 100% my son” Gold added just in case. He didn’t want Bae to ever think that he wasn’t. After he had found out about Milah's affair that resulted in Will he needed to know, although you only have to look at Bae to know he is Cameron son. 

“That hadn’t actually occurred to me but thank you” Bae replied. He stood there for a moment trying to process what his father had told him. His brother was in actual fact his half-brother, not that that made a difference to Bae. Will would always be his little brother “I better get going, I told Emma I wouldn’t be long but I needed to know what was going on”

Gold walked with Bae to the door and held it as his son stepped out, Bae turned and hugged his father, not something he did very often but he needed his dad to know he loved him in that moment. For raising him and Will by himself for all those years and now he was even more grateful knowing that Gold raised another man’s child.

“Love you Papa” Bae mumbled into Golds shoulder.

“Aye I love you too son” he replied, his voice thick with emotion. Gold watched Bae walk down the steps and off down the street before remembering Belle upstairs, this had been a very eventful morning so far and Gold felt like he could sleep for a week. He limped back up the stairs; his leg was starting to pay the price for his earlier antics.

When he walked into his bedroom Belle was asleep on his bed, her hair was fanned around her on the pillows and even though she was tucked under the comforter he could see his purple shirt on her body. A book was resting on her lap which Gold discovered was Her Handsome Hero, it wouldn’t have been his first choice read but it was still a good pick. He gently slid the book from under her hand and she stirred a little and snuggled further into the soft pillow.

He considered waking her, but she just looked so beautiful and peaceful he didn’t have the heart too, so he quickly undressed to his boxers and slowly crept into the bed next to her. He lay on his back while she was on her side facing him; she must have sensed him in her sleep and slowly snuggled up to him and wrapped her arm around his torso. He smiled happily, and soon began to drift off, he knew in the cold light of day things would be different between them, especially when Will returned from his trip. But for now he was content to lie in the arms of the most beautiful woman he had ever known. Tomorrow could wait.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this chapter is a little rushed as I have not been well this week :-(

Belle woke up later on and for a brief moment forgot where she was, that was until she felt an arm draped around her middle and looked down to see the tell-tale ring on its owner’s pinkie finger. She was in bed with Cameron. And then the whole night came back to her, spending the night with Cameron watching Casablanca, the phone call from the hospital, spending the night at her father’s bedside and then coming to Cameron’s house. 

She then thought about what had happened after that and her while body tingled. It had been amazing with Cameron and she couldn’t wait to do it over and over again with him. 

“If you think any harder your brain will explode” she smiled when she heard his sleepy voice come from behind her. She shifted in his arms and turned to face him. His eyes were still closed but he had a small smile on his lips.

“Good morning” Belle leant forward and placed a chaste kiss on his cheek.

Gold cracked one eye open and replied “morning..... Again” 

He had already seen Sunday morning once after Belles early morning visit closely followed by Neal’s visit, it was now 11am and almost lunch time.

Belle yawned, she was exhausted but she needed to get up and go and see her father.

“Are you Ok?” she nuzzled in closer to Cameron and he tightened his arms around her.

“I wish I could wake up to you every morning” he kissed the end of her nose.

“Me too” Belle smiled but then looked down sadly “but I have to go soon”

“I know” Gold wasn’t under the impression they could lounge around in bed all day like normal couples on a Sunday.

“I don’t want to go” she sighed and buried her head further into his chest.

“I know that too” Gold chuckled

They were both silent for a few minutes until Gold spoke again “any regrets?” he didn’t want to ask but it’s where his mind had gone to straight away when he woke. He still couldn’t quite believe a woman as beautiful as Belle would want him.

Belle moved back slightly so she could look him in the eyes “none whatsoever” she reached up and pushed a piece of his hair that had fallen over his eye out of the way “you?”

“None whatsoever” he mirrored her answer and moved forward to kiss her deeply. His mouth nudged hers open so he could slip his tongue in to mix with hers. A few moments went by before Belle had to pull away.

“As much as I want to continue this with you, visiting hours start soon” Belle sighed regretfully. She wanted to stay in bed and get to know Cameron much much more but her father was sick and she needed to get her priorities straight. If Gold had meant what he said then he would still be there when her father was well again. Gold gave her one last chaste kiss and pulled himself out of bed reluctantly, Belle watched him as he retrieved her clothes for her, he was clad in just his boxers and Belle couldn’t help but stare at his tight butt as he bent down to retrieve her things. 

“I’m feeling violated here” Gold joked when he caught her staring.

Belle could feel the heat rising to her cheeks at being caught “sorry”

Gold walked back toward the bed and bent to kiss her forehead “I don’t mind” he whispered.

Belle smiled and grabbed her clothes from him before heading to the en suite bathroom that adjoined Golds bedroom. She looked at herself in the mirror, her cheeks were flushed and her skin was glowing, she looked happy. She had to turn away as guilt started to rip through her. How could she be happy when her father was in hospital and she had just   
cheated on her boyfriend with his own father? She was a horrible person! 

She quickly got dressed and brushed out her hair with her fingers hoping she looked presentable enough to leave Golds house in the middle of the day. If the neighbours saw her leaving looking like she had just had sex then that would not be good for anyone. When she emerged from the bathroom she found the bedroom empty, she looked around for any sign of Cameron and then heard noise coming from downstairs. She made her way down and found him pouring tea into two cups and she could smell toast being made.

“It’s not much but I figured you might want to eat something before you left” he said “I’m guessing you haven't eaten since last night” he said and she shook her head no as he placed the toast rack down on the table. 

“Thank you” she sat down on the stool at the kitchen island and grabbed a couple of slices and the jar of jam he had placed on the table.

He put her cup of tea down in front of her and joined her for breakfast, they ate in silence, and the only noise they heard was the grandfather clock in the hall way chiming when it turned midday. Belle finished her breakfast and sat drinking her drink. She smiled at Cameron when she caught him looking at her.

“When can I see you again?” she asked. She didn’t want to sound desperate and she knew that things would be difficult when Will returned tomorrow but she needed Cameron.

“We’ll sort something Belle” he vowed. He couldn’t give an exact answer as he knew things weren’t going to be easy for them but he would find a way to see her.

“You promise?” he nodded his head.

“Nothing is going to keep me away from you” 

Belle smiled brightly and leaned over to kiss Cameron, she squeaked as he pulled her off her stool to stand in between his legs just as they both heard a key in the door. They both looked panicked and sprung apart.

“Dad!” Gold face paled when he heard Wills voice.

Belle looked at him wide eyed wondering what the hell they were going to say to explain Belles presence. Will walked into the kitchen a few seconds later, he looked between his father and girlfriend with a confused expression.

“Belle? What are you doing here?” Will mumbled. 

“Shouldn’t I be asking you that?” Gold interjected “you weren’t supposed to be back until tomorrow” 

“Yeah well the groom got arrested, kinda put a damper on the rest of the weekend” Will chuckled and walked further into the kitchen to grab a bottle of water out of the refrigerator.

“Arrested?” Belle was gobsmacked that Will could be so blasé about his friend being in trouble.

“oh don’t worry, his misses came and bailed him out” Will laughed again and Gold despaired of his son “anyway enough about me, what are you two doing here together?” 

Belle panicked but Gold didn’t hesitate to answer “Belle is here because she came here looking for you after her father fell ill, but you hadn’t bothered to inform her you were going away so I offered her a place to stay and something to eat before she goes back to the hospital” 

Will blanched at his father’s tone but then painted a mask of indifference on his face as he turned to Belle “is he ok?”

“He had a heart attack” Belle told him “So no he’s not ok”

“Do you want me to come to the hospital with you?” Will asked.

“No” Belle shook her head “I wouldn’t want you to put yourself out for me” she knew she had no right to be pissy with him after what she had spent the morning doing but she couldn’t help but be mad at him. At the present they were still a couple and he'd gone away without telling her.

“Fine” Will huffed and stormed out of the room. Gold winced when he heard the bedroom door slam.

“Well that went well” Gold mumbled around the rim of his cup.

Belle bit back a smile “I should really go” 

“Ok” Gold nodded and stood to walk her to the door. She stood with him and walked ahead.

She hesitated at the door, not knowing what to say when Will was just down the hall. 

“I’ll see you soon” Gold said quietly and she looked up at him with a soft smile. She wanted to kiss him but knew she couldn’t. She pulled the door open and stepped out onto the porch; she glanced around the neighbourhood and saw that it was deserted apart from a couple of cars driving passed. She turned back to Cameron and subtly blew a kiss to him and smiled. He smiled back at her and sent her a wink before she turned away and headed down the steps and away from the house.

Gold turned to head back inside just as Will returned to the kitchen

“Finished your tantrum?” Gold started to clean up the plates and cups from his and Belles breakfast- or was it lunch?

“Get lost” Will muttered.

“Take that as a no then” Gold shot back.

“I bet you had a great time telling Belle she could do better right?” Will snapped.

“I said nothing of the sort to her” Gold defended himself.

“Yeah right” Will scoffed “I’m the disappointment of a son, although not really your son so doesn’t matter right?” 

Gold grimaced, so he was finally admitting he knew he wasn’t his son “you are my son”

“No I’m not” Will snapped “not really, I’m nobody to you”

“Is that what you really think?” Gold barked back “You are everything to me, you and Neal equally, up until you got that letter have you ever thought I treated you any differently to how I treated him, you are my son, I raised you, I cared for you when you were sick, I chased the monsters away when you had nightmares, I took you wherever you wanted to go, whether it was Disneyland or the local football game” Gold was getting emotional now. 

“You lied to me my entire life though” Will argued “I had a right to know my real father”

“Your mother left you and your brother, she didn’t care for anyone but herself and that waste of space she left with” Gold yelled.

“But now they want to know me and you stopped her from speaking to me” Will shouted back.

Gold stopped, he was breathing heavy and they were getting nowhere, Will didn’t want to understand all that he had sacrificed to raise his two boys and Gold wasn’t sure he ever would “believe what you want” he sighed “but if you can’t see everything I did for you when I didn’t have to then that’s your bad luck” and with that Gold walked away. He grabbed his cane from its leaning position next to the counter and headed out. 

Gold felt physically exhausted as he walked down the street in the direction of his shop, he needed to be alone with his thoughts and as it was Sunday he could hide away and no-one would bother him as he didn’t open on Sundays. He glanced over at the library before he entered his shop and a small smile graced his lips at the thought of Belle. He should feel guilty for what he had done behind Wills back but he couldn’t bring himself to be. He was happy when he was with her, she was a shining light in his darkness and he couldn’t let her go now. 

Belle yawned as she rode the elevator up to the intensive care ward where her father was located. She was exhausted but she couldn’t stop the smile spreading across her face when she thought of Cameron. She hadn’t felt this way about anyone in her life, not even when she was with Gaston had she felt so giddy at the thought of seeing him again. She could still feel his lips against hers as he thrust into her; she had to clench her thighs together to quench the ache she had for him.

The elevator dinged as it reached the floor she had selected and she walked out and headed down the corridor to the room she had been told her father had been moved to. When she reached his room her hand flew to her mouth to stifle a sob. Her usually strong, larger than life papa looked so broken and small. He had tubes attached to him and a breathing mask over his mouth, the only sound in the room was the rhythmic beeping of the heart monitor.

“Papa?” Belle whispered as she took a seat next to him and grasped his hand, being careful not to pull on any wires. His eyes remained closed but Belle knew he could hear her “I love you so much” she kissed his hand. She remained with him for another hour before her back started to ache from leaning over so she went to the cafeteria to get herself a coffee and something to eat. When she sat down she pulled out her cell phone and read through her messages.

There was one from Emma

JUST HEARD ABOUT YOUR DAD, LET ME KNOW IF ANYTHING I CAN DO XX 

There was one from Ruby

OMG IS YOUR DAD OK? I JUST HEARD XX

And then there was one from Cameron which made Belle smile 

I HOPE YOUR FATHER IS DOING BETTER? LET ME KNOW IF YOU NEED ANYTHING. I’M ALWAYS FOR YOU X

Belle frowned when she realised there was nothing from Will, but then she realised she shouldn’t be surprised and she had heard from the people she knew cared about her and that was all that mattered. She did feel guilty for cheating on Will, especially with his own father (sort of!), but she couldn’t help but feel happy at the fact that she had been with Cameron. He was all she wanted and now Belle had to think of how she was going to end things with Will, because she couldn’t bear to not be with Gold officially for another day. 

Gold was still tinkering away in his shop, or was he hiding? The sun was beginning to set casting the shop into darkness so he had to stop what he was doing. He didn’t want to switch the lights on as that would alert people to his presence in the shop which people would take to mean he was open for business and he wanted to be left alone.  
His phone began to buzz on his desk and he rolled his eyes at the noise, it seemed he wasn’t going to be getting any peace after all. He picked up his cell and saw a message from Neal 

ANY CHANCE YOU CAN TAKE HENRY TO STORYTIME TOMORROW? 

Golds fingers hovered over his usual response before he thought about it. Storytime equalled seeing Belle with no one suspecting anything. It was the perfect opportunity. He carefully typed a response so as not to seem too eager.

I SUPPOSE SO.

Neal’s response was almost instantaneous.

CHEERS POPS. HE GETS OUT OF SCHOOL AT 3PM

Gold sent an OK and put his phone away. He sat for a moment and decided he couldn’t hide away anymore and headed home, he hoped Will would be out by now and he could just go straight to bed and look forward to seeing Belle tomorrow.

On his way home his cell began to ring and he groaned at the device, he really should turn it off but he was always afraid something bad would happen and no one would be able to get hold of him. He had learnt that lesson the hard way when the boys were small and Neal had had a fall at school and the teachers couldn’t get hold of him.

He looked at the screen before answering and frowned when he saw ‘number unknown’ flashing across it.

“Gold” he answered in a clipped tone knowing whoever it was, it was going to be something to do with business. Anyone he cared about were already in his phone book.

“What have you said to my son?” Gold cringed when he heard Milah's shrill voice.

“Hello Milah” he sighed.

“What have you said to him?” she barked again.

“You’ll have to be a little more specific dearie” Gold sniped “or have you forgotten you have two sons?”

“Don’t play games with me” Milah’s voice got a pitch higher “Will. What have you said to him?”

“well considering since he received your damn letter he's barely said two words to me I think you might find you brought this on yourself this time” Gold growled. No way was he taking the blame for this one.

“Oh please” Milah scoffed “I know you, you would've done anything to get him to hate me”

“You did that all by yourself when you left him and ran off with that poncey, eye liner wearing, pirate wannabe” Golds voice grew louder and he hoped he didn’t run into anyone he knew on his way home.

“You’re just jealous of Killian” Milah replied smugly and Gold just laughed “you can’t keep Will from me, he's not yours”

“Will is twenty five years old, if he wants to speak to you then it’s his choice, I can’t stop him” Gold tried to reign in his temper “and he might not be mine by blood but he's my son, you gave up any right to call yourself his mother when you chose to leave him, goodbye Milah”

“Don’t you dare hang-” Milah screamed but Gold smiled as he cut her off.

Gold stopped and put his phone on silent just as he saw ‘unknown number’ begin to flash across the screen again. He cancelled the call and put the device in his pocket; he’d had enough for one day and definitely wanted his bed now. The house was shrouded in darkness as he walked up the path so he knew Will was out for which he was thankful, he wasn’t in the mood for another run in with him. He climbed the steps and headed straight up to his bedroom after grabbing his bottle of scotch from the kitchen. He poured himself a small tumbler and sat on his bed with his back against the headboard, it didn’t take long for fatigue to kick in and he felt himself drifting off to thoughts of Belle and how much he couldn’t wait to see her tomorrow.


	9. Chapter 9

Gold waited by the school gate the next day, like he had done many times before but this time felt different. When Neal had text him to ask him to pick up Henry and take him to Storytime today he had almost dropped his phone in his eagerness to say yes but his son hadn’t questioned why he was so happy to help. Luckily. 

He checked his watch again for about the fifth time in the last minute and wished the time would hurry up. The bell finally rang and Golds heart was hammering in his chest, he felt silly at the way he was reacting to seeing Belle but he couldn’t help it. Henry came bounding down the steps a few seconds later; it seemed Cam wasn’t the only member of the Gold family eager to get to the library.

“Hi Grandpa!” Henry yelled as he came running up to Gold

“Afternoon Henry” Gold ruffled the boys hair and he slapped his Grandpa’s hand away.

“Are we going to the library?” Henry asked eagerly bouncing up and down on the balls of his feet.

“Of course” Gold nodded “it is story time today is it not?”   
Henry nodded happily and skipped along beside Cam. The library was a couple of blocks away and while Henry chattered incessantly beside him about his school day he couldn’t help but get nervous about seeing Belle. He knew he had only seen her the day before but everything was still so up in the air about them and he was still unsure about her feelings. They rounded the corner and saw the library come into view.

Henry ran ahead but not so far that Gold would have to tell him off. They reached the front door and Henry pulled the handle to open it wide. When they entered Gold couldn’t spot Belle and a horrible feeling washed over him ‘maybe she wasn’t working today’. He saw another woman was standing by the armchair and the colourful rug the children sat on and she was speaking to a few of the other children.

“Who’s that lady?” Gold asked his grandson. Henry peered over to where his grandfather was looking.

“Oh that’s Ashley” Henry replied “she tells stories too sometimes, she’s not as good as Miss Belle though. Ashley only comes here when Miss Belle can’t make it”

“Oh” Cam looked down sadly suddenly feeling very silly for getting his hopes up. Henry ran off to join the other children and Cam stayed at the back of the room. He didn’t feel like making conversation with the other adults now and no one had spotted him so he kept himself out of the way. About ten minutes into the story, a door to Golds left opened quickly and a hand shot out to grab his arm, before he had time to react he was being pulled into an office.

“What the-…..Belle?” he was gobsmacked when he saw her stood in front of him with a wicked smile on her face. 

“Hello Cameron” she smiled shyly then. He pulled her to him, enveloping her in his arms and she buried her head in his chest.

“You have no idea how happy I am to see you” Gold tightened his arms around her. 

“I can’t breathe” she groaned playfully.

“Oh sorry” Gold loosened his grip and stepped back.

“I didn’t say let go” she grinned and stepped forward to wrap her arms around his neck. His hands found their way straight to her hips. She reached up on her tiptoes although he wasn’t that much taller than her but it was enough for her to need to stretch, and she kissed him softly.

“Someone might have seen us” Gold sighed against her lips. 

“I was careful” Belle whispered “I wanted to see you and when I opened the door and saw you stood there I thought it was fate” 

“Why did you want to see me?” he asked quietly, while his hands wound tighter around her, pulling her flush against him. He began kissing her neck.

“I missed you” she gasped when he sucked on her pulse point. Oh what this man could do with his lips!

“How much?” he teased her further.

“So much” her head rolled back so he had better access to her throat. He moved up to capture her mouth again and her head came back up to meet him.

“I missed you too” Gold rested his forehead against hers as he stopped for breath “you are the only reason I agreed to bring Henry here today, I was devastated when I learnt you   
weren’t here. Little did I know you were hiding out here” he chuckled.

“I wasn’t hiding” Belle defended with a smack to his chest “I was working and Ashley offered to do the story today”

“I’m so glad she did” Gold replied and kissed her again. This time backing her against the nearest wall.

“Me too” she was pressed so hard against the wall she could feel every part of him, every part of him “I need you”

He looked into her eyes and he could see they were now a dark blue as opposed to her normal icy blue “someone might hear us” he was very well aware of the crowd in the next room, including his grandson. 

“Are you saying you can’t be quiet?” she bit on his earlobe gently. She knew that what they were doing was dangerous; anyone could hear them and walk in but if she was honest with herself it turned her on a little.

“Oh no sweetheart” he whispered huskily in her ear “it’s you who would be screaming” 

Belle gasped when she felt his hand go beneath the hem of her dress and come into contact with her lace panties. She moaned when he started rubbing circles over her nub through the material.

Belle brought her own hand up to her mouth to muffle the sounds that were threatening to come spilling out. Gold grinned in triumph while she glared at him, her hand was still covering her mouth and his hand was not stopping its ministrations.

“Do you want me to stop?” he nipped are her neck.

“Don’t you dare” she growled breathlessly. She could never tell him to stop. She never wanted him to stop. His fingers were like magic.

He pushed her soaked underwear to the side and pushed two fingers inside her, crooking them slightly.

“Yes....... Cam” Belle forgot where she was. Cam caught her lips with his to muffle her screams; she hooked her leg around his hip to give him better access.

She could feel how aroused he was through his trousers so she snaked her hand between them and fumbled with his belt, she struggled for a moment but soon the leather slipped through the metal buckle. She managed his zipper a lot easier as all the while Cams fingers were working inside her she was actually having a hard time staying upright.

Gold was so lost in Belle he hadn’t actually registered what she had done with his belt and trousers until her fingers came into contact with his throbbing member. He hissed and lost the rhythm of his fingers for a moment.

“Fuck Belle” 

They both stopped for a moment, just staring into each other’s eyes before Golds hand slid under Belles thighs and she lifted her other leg so he was holding her up against wall. 

“Cam” Belle said his name just above a whisper and ran her hands through his hair and softly began to kiss him as she sank down on him, taking him all the way inside her. His leg was struggling with holding them both up so he pulled her away from the wall and stumbled over to the small armchair a couple of feet away and sat down with her straddling him. Belle moved above him while Cams hands caressed her thighs as they kissed. 

Cam could feel himself building and he felt her starting to clench around his cock. Belle buried her head in the crook of his neck and tried to muffle her cries. He gripped her thighs and started moving her hips faster.

“So good” she cried “please don’t stop”

“Oh God Belle” Cam grunted. She clutched his shoulders almost painfully as she came, screaming his name into his shoulder so as not to draw attention from the crowd outside, he followed her over the edge a couple thrusts after. He kissed her as he did so.

They sat in silence for a moment, just the sounds of their heavy breaths filling the room. Belle lifted her head and smiled at Cam which he returned before she placed a soft kiss on his lips. She lifted herself off his lap and stood on shaky legs as she adjusted her underwear and skirt. Cam watched her as he tucked himself back in his trousers and did up his belt. He stood leaning on his cane while he watched her sorting her hair out in the mirror, he walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her neck gently, she leaned into him and closed her eyes.

“I love you” she blurted out and opened her eyes in shock. Cam froze when he heard her words, unsure he had heard her correctly. Belle opened her mouth to say something but nothing came out, she tried to pull away from him, feeling mortified by what she had said but Cams arms didn’t loosen.

“I love you too” he whispered. Her eyes locked with his in the mirror.

“You don’t have to say that just because I did” she wanted his words to be true but also she couldn’t understand a man like Cameron loving her.

“I wouldn’t say those words if I didn’t mean them Belle” he turned her to face him and pushed a stray piece of hair behind her ear “you are the most beautiful, amazing, kind hearted woman I have ever met, and I’m so in love with you”

Belle looked at him, she was at a loss for words, no one had ever said such beautiful things about her “I love you so much Cam” she finally said. The words didn’t feel enough but they were exactly how she felt, he kissed her softly until the moment was broken by cheering voices coming from the next room.

“Story time must be over” Belle said disappointed. She didn’t want this moment with Cam to end but she knew he had to get back to Henry before anyone noticed he’d gone. 

“Can’t you make Ashley read another story” he joked.

“Sadly not” she replied with a giggle “can I see you again soon?” she asked.

“I'm hoping so” he replied gently.

“I'm going to talk to Will” Belle declared “I can’t carry on like this”

“Are you sure this is what you want?” Gold still couldn’t help but feel paranoid she would change her mind.

“I've never been surer of anything in my life” she determined “unless you’ve changed your mind?”

“Of course not” Gold pulled her closer “I just worry that when people find out about us then they will make your life difficult. I'm not the best choice for you”

“I decide my fate” Belle told him “and I choose you”

“That’s very good to hear” Gold was relieved “I better get back before Henry notices I've gone”

“Ok” Belle nodded and turned to pull the door open slightly to see if anyone was looking “coast is clear” she whispered to Cameron when she saw all the focus was still on Ashley.

“Good” Gold growled in her ear making her shiver when she realised how close he was.

“Behave” Belle giggled and shoved him through the door. He walked off slowly towards the crowd and smiled to himself when no one acknowledged him. He turned and saw Belle still stood in the doorway watching him. He mouthed an ‘I love you’ to her and she smiled brightly and returned the sentiment before closing the office door. 

Gold tried to muffle the smile on his face as he stood waiting for Henry by the circulation desk, it wouldn’t do his reputation any good of people saw him smiling like an idiot. His grandson was chatting to Ashley and he had to laugh quietly at the little boy’s energy, Gold didn’t know where he got it from. Henry soon spotted his grandpa waiting for him and came running over.

“You ready to go?” Gold asked Henry.

“Yeah, where did you go?” Henry looked up at his Grandpa who visibly gulped at the child’s question “I looked around for you but couldn’t see you”

“I was here” Gold paused as he thought of an answer “I was just chatting to Belle, she Uncle Will’s girlfriend you know”

“Yeah I know” Henry nodded and then changed the subject to the story that Ashley had just read to them. Gold let out the breath he hadn't known he had been holding as Henry seemed to accept his answer and not think anything more of it. Perks of being a six year old Gold assumed.

Belle sat back down in her office chair and stared at the now closed door. She had a giddy smile on her face and she didn’t know if it would ever go away. She was in love and he was in love with her. 

But then she thought about Will, and she didn’t know how to feel. She felt guilty for what she had done and how she felt, she was worried about how he would react to her ending things between them and she also worried about how he would react in a few months when she and Cameron decided to go public.

Belle needed to see Will and get it over and done with so she picked up her cell and called him, the phone rang about five times before she heard him answer.

“Hey Belle” he actually sounded happy and for some reason Belle’s heart sank.

“Hey Will” she replied.

“How’s your dad?” he asked. Belle was stunned that he had asked.

“He’s on the mend thankfully” she told him “should be moving out of intensive care tomorrow”

“That’s good” Will said. They were both silent for a moment.

“Will we need to talk” Belle eventually filled the silence and cringed a little at her choice of words. That phrase was never a good one.

“Yeah I think we do” Will agreed and Belle wasn’t sure what he thought they needed to talk about.

They arranged to meet later that evening at Belles apartment to talk and hung up. Belle sat chewing on the end of her pen contemplating what she was going to say to Will. It wasn’t going to be an easy conversation and she knew she couldn’t tell him the whole truth about why she was ending things so she would need to come up with a better explanation, one that wouldn’t hurt him.

Five o’clock soon came around and Belle started to lock up the library for the night. Ashley left just after five and that left Belle alone with her thoughts. She was nervous about her conversation with Will but at the same time she was excited for her future with Cameron. Once she had cleaned up and locked up the library she headed up to her apartment to wait for Will. They had actually agreed a time this time so she quickly got changed and waited for six o’clock to arrive.

She was surprised when bang on six she heard her doorbell buzz; she went over and opened the door to let Will in.

“Hey babe” he entered and gave Belle a kiss on the cheek

“Hey” she gave a pained smile. For the first time in a while he seemed happy and she was about to destroy that possibly.

They sat down on the couch but kept a small distance between their bodies. 

“So what did you want to talk about?” Belle asked.

“You go first” Will urged.

“No you go” Belle protested

“I spoke to my dad” he mumbled and the air left Belles lungs. Surely Cameron hadn’t told him the truth about them without telling her first.

“About what” she tried to sound calm but failed miserably; she just hoped Will didn’t notice.

“I told him I knew he wasn’t my dad” Will shrugged like it was no big deal. 

“I thought you didn’t want to tell him?” Belle questioned, last she had spoken to Will about this he had told her in no uncertain terms that she was not to mention it to anyone especially Cameron or Neal.

“Yeah well he pissed me off and it sort of just came out” he said and leant back against the couch cushions and stared up at the ceiling.

“What did he say?” Belle was beginning to understand why Gold had been so happy to see her earlier. He had been upset after his run in with Will.

“Nothing much, just how I should be grateful that he raised me even though he knew I wasn’t his son and that he always treated me and Neal the same, which is bull” Will muttered “he just can’t seem to understand that I feel betrayed, my whole life has been a lie and it’s his fault”

“He didn’t want to hurt you” Belle interjected.

“I can understand why he didn’t tell me when I was a kid but I’m twenty five years old now, he should’ve told me years ago, I could’ve got to know my real dad”

“Your real dad knew about you Will and he didn’t come for you” Belle said gently “shouldn’t you be more mad and him and your mother?”

“I am mad at them but more so at father” Will told her “he claims to be my real father in every way that matters but real dad’s don’t lie to their sons and keep important things like this from them. He betrayed me, what kind of father does that? I don’t know if I can ever forgive him for this Belle” 

Belle sat in silence listening to Will confession, she felt like she had been punched in the gut as she thought about his words. Her and his father were committing the most absolute betrayal against him, she couldn’t destroy whatever relationship Will and his father had left. She could never forgive herself if she was the reason for Gold losing his son forever.

“Anyway what did you want to talk about?” Will changed the subject.

“What?” Belle’s attention was brought back to Will “oh... ummm..... Nothing it doesn’t matter, it can wait” she chewed on her bottom lip, she couldn’t end things now, she would soon but for now she needed to speak to Cameron. She just had to hope that he would understand.


	10. Chapter 10

Cameron hobbled around the corner from the back of his shop where he had parked his car and made his way to the front entrance a couple of days after seeing Belle at the library. He thought he may have heard from her by now, as he knew Will had gone over to her place that night ‘to talk’, which was how she had put it. But he hadn’t heard anything and although Will still wasn’t speaking to him he knew his son hadn’t been given anymore upsetting news. Golds heart sank as he thought about why Belle hadn’t ended her relationship with Will yet, maybe she had changed her mind, or maybe sleeping with him was just one big joke that she had been in on with Will. 

Gold didn’t think she would be that cruel, he didn’t know her as much as he wanted too yet but he knew she didn’t have that kind of cruel streak in her. He had to believe the best of her, she had told him she loved him, Belle wouldn’t lie about something like that. He hoped.

Just as Cameron got to his store he saw her coming down the steps from her apartment. She didn’t look happy and he was immediately concerned, maybe something had happened with her father. Gold glanced around the street and saw that it was deserted as it was such an early hour, so he pulled out his cell to send her a text.

ARE YOU OK? X

Gold saw Belle pull her cell phone out of her pocket and he thought he saw a brief smile before she turned the device off and shoved it back in her pocket without replying. She hadn’t seen him stood across the street and proceeded round to the library entrance and unlocked the door before entering.

Gold frowned for a moment before heading into his pawn shop, deciding not to dwell on the fact Belle hadn’t replied to his message. He put it down to maybe she was running late for work and she would reply in a little while when she was less busy. 

A few hours after Gold had opened the store he sat in the back room staring at his phone, Belle still hadn’t replied. His thoughts began to run amuck when it closed on four hours since he had messaged her. Maybe she had changed her mind about them, maybe she realised it was Will she was meant to be with or maybe he had just been a game to her. He couldn’t stop those thoughts repeating themselves over and over again.

He waited about another hour before he couldn’t take it anymore and sent another message.

IS EVERYTHING OK? X

He waited with baited breath as he hoped for a reply this time; he nearly dropped his phone when it beeped a couple of minutes later

I’M SO SORRY I’VE BEEN MEGA BUSY. CAN WE TALK LATER? XX

Gold breathed a sigh of relief that Belle had replied but then began to worry all over again about what she needed to talk to him about. This was getting ridiculous, he was Cameron Gold and here he was acting like a schoolboy and getting all worked up about a woman.

SURE. COME TO THE SHOP AFTER YOU CLOSE UP TONIGHT? X

Belles reply was almost instantaneous 

OK SEE YOU LATER XX 

Cam smiled down at his phone and felt some of the anxiety he had been feeling melt away. He had been worrying about nothing and he hoped that what she needed to speak to him about wasn’t anything bad. The day passed quite quickly and soon he was turning the shop sign to ‘closed’ and waiting for Belle to close up the library. He knew she normally closed up around five o clock so he knew she shouldn’t be long. He’d sent her a text to tell her to come in through the side door to avoid any rumours starting.

At about ten minutes past five the door opened and Belle walked in. She smiled at him and he instantly relaxed.

“Hey” Belle said as she came close to him.

“Hi” Cameron greeted and wrapped his arms around her waist as her hands came up and around his neck.

“I’ve missed you” she mumbled into his chest.

“Is everything Ok?” he was worried about her demeanour.

Belle remained quiet and just hugged Cameron tighter, she needed to talk to him about not breaking up with Will but she just wanted a few minutes with Cameron where she could hold him close and pretend that there was nothing standing in their way.

“Belle” Gold urged her backwards by gently pushing her shoulders and he became even more worried when he saw the tears glistening in her eyes “please tell me what’s wrong sweetheart, is it your father?” 

Belle shook her head no as she continued to look down at the ground.

“Sit down and tell me what’s wrong” Gold moved her towards the small cot in the back room and sat down next to her.

“I don’t know what to do” she said quietly.

“About what?” he asked worriedly.

“Will” she said plainly.

“What about Will?” he probed. He stomach felt like it was knotting up as he thought about where this conversation was going.

“I can’t break up with him” Belle informed him and Gold felt like he had been slapped. Anger surged through him as her words registered in his head.

“Of course you can’t” He sneered and stood from his place next to her on the cot. Belle looked up at him as he stood and looked out of the window and he thought over everything that had happened.

“Cameron” Belles voice was so quiet he barely heard her say his name.

“Maybe you should just go back to calling me Mr Gold dearie” he muttered. Belle stood from the cot and walked over to him, she placed her hand on his shoulder but he shrugged it off and walked away from her.

“What’s going on?” Belle was confused by his sudden change.

“What’s going on is that this” he gestured between the two of them “was obviously just some joke between you and Will, get the old man to fall for you and then leave him, was that it?”

“That’s not-” she began to explain but he cut her off.

“Its fine dearie” he waved her away “of course you were never going to break up with Will, I never believed you would, I was just having a bit of fun as well” 

Belle felt like the air had been knocked out of her lungs as he continued to rant at her, why wouldn’t he let her explain? She knew the stuff he was saying wasn’t true, she'd seen the look in his eyes when he had told her he loved her; no one could fake those emotions.

“Will you just let me explain?” she raised her voice which made him stop 

“There’s no need” Gold sighed “just go back to Will, and leave me be” 

“No I-” she tried again but he was still having none of it. He was so stubborn!

“Miss French just go” he pointed toward the door and then turned his back on her as he waited for her to leave. He could’ve sworn he heard her sniffling as she slowly picked up her belongings and headed towards the door. She stopped and looked at Gold and turned on her heel to walk in front of him. He stood tall but his eyes drifted to look into hers.

“Whatever you may think” Belle jabbed her index finger into his chest “I do love you, and I hope you realise that I’m telling the truth before it’s too late” she then turned and left the store. He waited until he heard the door slam before he let him shoulders sag and he buried his face in his hands as tears threatened to spill.

Belle walked out into the side alleyway and leant against the wall to collect herself before she walked back across the street to her apartment, she didn’t want to run the risk of bumping into someone and having to explain why she was crying after leaving Golds shop. Just as she was about to walk away she heard an almighty crash come from the room she had just left. She chanced a glance through the window and was shocked by what she saw. 

Cameron was using his cane to demolish anything and everything in his sight. She considered going back in and stopping him but she knew he didn’t want to see her right now, she was the reason for his melt down and he needed to get it out of his system. A plan formulated in her mind as she stepped away from the window and walked away.

Gold continued to shout and smash until he could no longer breathe; he stopped and looked around at the carnage he had caused. Panic began to rise in him as he thought about an object in his back room that he couldn’t bear to have broken. He rummaged around in the debris until he came across the item in question. The chipped cup...... the one Belle had broken when she had come into the shop not too long ago; it was her cup and something Gold couldn’t bear to part with. He sat down on the floor and leant against his desk as he examined the porcelain cup to check for anymore flaws. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw it was still intact save for the small chip it already had.

He surveyed the damage and realised it could mostly just be swept up and chucked away, nothing expensive had been smashed and anything else he could replace. He didn’t want to tidy up now so he grabbed his coat and his cane and decided the mess could wait until tomorrow. He went and made sure the front door was locked before heading back into the wrecked storeroom and leaving via the side door. He didn’t feel much like talking to anyone and this way he could avoid running into people.

His car was parked in the alley and he was grateful that he had drove to work that morning as he looked up and saw the blackest cloud he'd ever seen looming over head. He had just made it to his vehicle as the first drops of rain began to fall. He put the car in drive and started to pull out of the alleyway slowly, mindful of the weather and other cars that may be on the road. He drove down Main Street and stopped at the crossing when he saw another car coming across. As he was about to drive on he felt a cold gust of wind hit him and he heard a slam of the door before he saw Belle sitting next to him.

“What the hell are you doing?” he barked. He wasn’t sure if he was mad about her just showing up in his car when he’d told her to leave him alone not a half an hour before or if he was mad that she was out in this weather, she could get sick.

“We need to talk and you’re going to listen” she said forcefully and held up her hand to stop his protests “no you said all you had to say earlier, now it’s my turn, now you better take us somewhere private where we can talk or do you want to sit here and risk someone seeing?” 

He opened and closed his mouth like a fish as he fought the urge to say something scathing and growled under his breath as he drove forward. He had to think about where to go before an idea popped into his head and he turned onto the road that led out of Storybrooke. Belle looked over at him confused when they passed the ‘Welcome to Storybrooke’ sign but chose not to say anything. The lights from passing cars illuminated his face every now and then and it made him look positively evil. 

They drove for about another half an hour before Gold slowed and turned off the road and headed down a dirt track that led into the woods. Belle began to chew on her lip nervously, maybe jumping in his car and forcing him to talk had been a bad idea. She stayed quiet as they bumped along the makeshift road, the only sounds that could be heard were the rain pelting against the metal roof of the car and the twigs breaking as the wheels rolled over the top of them. Eventually Gold began to slow the car to a stop as a small cabin came into view.

“What is this place?” Belle finally asked.

“My friend Jeff lives here but I own it, he’s away at the moment” Gold said as an explanation.

Gold opened his car door and a gust of wind blew through along with the rain making Belle shiver.

“Are you coming dearie?” he shouted over the rain and slammed his car door shut and ran up to the porch. Belle watched him go, and realised she didn’t have a choice but to follow him. She couldn’t leave, they were in the middle of nowhere and she would more than likely get washed away in the storm. She took a deep breath and pulled open the door and rushed out, she ran towards Gold who was watching her with a slight smile. When she reached him his mask fell back into place and he fixed her with a cold look. Her hair was wet and sticking to her forehead, her clothes were clinging to her body and to Gold she had never looked more beautiful, but he couldn’t let her know what he was thinking.

“You better not drip too much on the floors, Jeff just had the place cleaned” he sniped.

Belle blanched, she had thought she had caught a ghost of a smile on his face when she had been running toward him but she must've been mistaken because he was still being cold toward her. This may be harder than she thought.

She walked into the cabin ahead of Gold and then watched as he came around her and walked further into the room and proceeded to switch on the lights. They stood on opposite ends of the room just staring at each other. Belle knew she needed to speak; she had been the one to effectively kidnap him so she could talk to him after all.

“You were wrong you know” she said suddenly.

“And what was I wrong about?” he asked.

“Pretty much everything you said” she said bluntly “my feelings for you are not some joke between me and Will, and I also know that your feelings were not a lie like you said”

“And how do you know that?” Gold scoffed “maybe I’m just a good actor”

“No one’s that good Cameron” she shook her head.

“It doesn’t matter anyway” he sighed “You said it yourself you can’t break up with Will, and there’s no way I’m sharing you with my own son for the rest of our lives so we'll just have to go our separate ways”

“You’re such an idiot” Belle laughed despite the serious conversation. Gold looked up shocked at her outburst.

“Excuse me?” he smirked.

“You. Are. An. Idiot” she enunciated each word as she took steps towards him “I didn’t say I was never going to break up with Will”

“What?” he whispered as she got very close to him. Suddenly his collar around his neck felt very tight.

“If you had let me explain” she twirled his tie around her hand “I was going to say that I can’t break up with him right now, he’s very upset with you over the stuff with his mother and I don’t want you to lose him if he finds out about us right now. Maybe in a couple of weeks when he’s called down a bit”

“So you still want to be with me?” Golds hands moved to her hips as she pulled his tie and guided his head closer to hers.

“Well after your little outburst I’m not so sure” she teased and pulled his tie again until his nose touched hers.

Gold smirked a little and lifted his hand to push a stray tendril of her hair behind her ear and then ghosted his hand down her cheek “I should’ve listened to you” he stated quietly.

“Yes you should have” Belle agreed “but what’s done is done, I think the back room of your shop took the brunt of your anger anyway” 

Golds eyes shot to hers “you saw that?” 

“I was still in the alley when I heard the commotion; I was going to come back in but then thought better of it, whatever was going on you obviously needed to get it out of your system”

“Yeah that was probably for the best” Gold acquiesced “you know I would never hurt you though right?” he had to ask. After seeing his outburst he didn’t want her to be afraid of him.

“I know that” Belle assured him.  
“I never used to be like this” Gold informed her. She held his hand and him over to the couch and gestured for him to sit next to her.

“What do you mean?” she gently probed. They hadn’t been seeing each other that long and therefore it was nice to be getting just a snippet of the life the man she loved had before her.

“So quick to believe you wouldn’t love me” he mumbled “I think they call it self-deprecating”

“What happened to make you feel that way?” she asked.

“In one word...... Milah” he spat his ex-wife’s name like it was poison.

“Will and Neal’s mother” she stated and he nodded.

“doesn’t exactly do much for you confidence when the woman you’re married to ends up sleeping with someone else, getting pregnant by them and then begging for another chance to you raise the baby even though you know it’s not yours, just to find out a couple of years later that she’s still fucking that idiot that knocked her up and then she tells you she’s leaving you for him and leaving you with their baby”

Belle sat there gobsmacked for a moment, no wonder he didn’t trust her easily. 

“I shouldn’t compare you to her and for that I’m sorry” he said sincerely “these are my issues and if you’re patient I will try to resolve them”

“I will do anything I can to help with that” she smiled and reached up to stroke his cheek “I love you”

“I love you too” he smiled. Belle had been worried she wouldn’t see his smile again. It was definitely her favourite look on him. Or maybe it was the look he was giving her now?? They were alone, no one would disturb them here and they had just made up after a fight. 

“I know that look Mr Gold” she breathed.

“What look?” he shrugged innocently as his hand trailed up her thigh.

“You know what look” she shot back and gasped as his hand went underneath her skirt. Cameron levelled her with a look that basically asked if she was complaining, she answered by kissing him fiercely. His arm went around her waist and pulled her so she was straddling his lap. She wrapped her arms around his neck as their kiss grew more urgent.

Cameron's hands moved to her ass and he pulled her flush against him so she could feel how much he wanted her.

“Please tell me this place has a bed?” she breathed heavily with her forehead resting against his.

“Of course it does” Gold surprised her by standing up from the couch with his hands securely under her thighs so her legs were around his waist. She wondered how strong he must be to carry her with a bad leg but then his lips were on her neck and she lost that train of thought immediately. He soon kicked open a door and Belle squeaked when she found herself falling onto the soft mattress, she was about to reprimand him for his less than gentle manoeuvre but before she could speak he was on top of her and any thoughts of telling him off disappeared. Maybe she could punish him tomorrow!


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Things are about to get interesting :-)

February seemed to appear out of nowhere for Belle, Christmas and New year had passed in a blur as she spent the holiday with Will and barely got to see Cameron and then January was busy at the library so she barely got a moment to herself. 

She and Cameron had managed to steal a couple of moments alone but they had been short, they had only had chance steal a couple of kisses and cuddles before someone would interrupt them. 

The library was now quiet and she could leave it in Ashley capable hands. 

“Hey Ashley” Belle called to the blond who was stacking shelves.

“Yeah” Ashley acknowledged.

“I’ve just got to nip out for a little while” Belle said “can you hold the fort?” she added.

“Yeah sure” Ashley waved her away and turned her attention back to the task at hand.

Belle muttered a ‘thanks’ and grabbed her jacket and bag and headed out of the building. The sun was shining but the air was still crisp and Belle stopped outside the library to door to pull her coat tighter around her body. She smiled a little when she saw her breath appear in front of her, still feeling like a kid when that happened.

She took a step towards the pawn shop across the road before another idea popped into her head and she diverted her steps towards the diner. Ruby was working behind the counter when Belle entered.

“Hey Belles” Ruby popped the piece of bubble gum she had been chewing “what can I get you?” 

“Can I have two BLT's and two iced teas to takeaway please Rubes?” Belle said scanning the menu to see if there was anything else she fancied.  
“Sure” Ruby finished scribbling the order down on her pad and took it over to the kitchen “you treating Ashley to lunch?” 

“Um no actually” Belle continued to look down at the counter, not wanting to look her best friend in the eye.

“Belle?” Ruby whispered to get her attention “please tell me you’re just extra hungry today?” 

Belle just looked at Ruby, and didn’t say anything.

“Belle I thought you and him was a one-time thing” Ruby continued to whisper. Luckily the diner was quiet as it was currently in the pull between breakfast and the lunch rush.

“Things changed” Belle shrugged. She felt awful that she hadn’t told Ruby her news about what had been going on since before Christmas but as well as not having time for Cameron she had also not had time for her friends.

“What about Will?” Ruby asked. She didn’t much care for Will so she wasn’t really upset that Belle was cheating on him but she knew her friend. She knew it would be killing Belle.

“I’m going to end it” Belle told her “but things are a little complicated right now between him and his dad so we don’t want to make things worse so we’re waiting a while”

“But this isn’t you Belle” Ruby said gently “is he forcing you to do this?” 

“What no!” anger surged through Belle “it was my idea to wait to end things with Will” 

“But you’re not a cheater” Ruby said “You hate cheaters”

“I know” Belle looked down sadly “But I love him Rubes. And this is the only way for us to be together right now, I can’t be without him”

Ruby studied her friend, she hadn’t been in love since Gaston, she knew Belle didn’t use that word lightly “and he feels the same way?” 

Belle nodded and looked up “he does”

“Then go be with him” Ruby smiled and handed Belle her order “just be careful”

“Thanks Rubes” belle smiled gratefully and jumped off her stool and made the short walk over to the pawn shop.

Belle walked into Golds shop and cringed a little when the small bell chimed above her head, silently shushing the inanimate object. She couldn’t wait to surprise him, even though it was only with a sandwich from Granny’s she was just looking forward to seeing him…. and maybe get time to fool around a little.

He obviously hadn’t heard the bell, so she crept towards the curtain that led to the back room. She pulled the cloth back quietly and saw him sat at his desk, working meticulously to fix what looked like a fob watch, he was in his own little world, it was no wonder he hadn’t heard her come. She checked her appearance in a nearby mirror that was for sale and when she was happy she steeled her nerves and pulled the curtain aside to enter.

He looked up briefly at the movement he saw out of the corner of his eye and then back down at the watch before his head snapped back up again. Belle giggled at his double take and the gobsmacked expression on Golds face.

“Hello” she smiled brightly. Gold shook his head and stood from the desk, his joints protesting after being leant over for so long. 

“What are you doing here?” Gold asked and Belle thought he wasn’t pleased to see her until he saw the look in his eyes.

“I missed you” she stated. She put down the bag containing lunch on a nearby bench and slowly walked towards Cam. He came around his desk until he was standing in front her.

“Good” he pushed a stray hair behind her ear and cupped her cheek “because I missed you too”

She smiled as she stared into his eyes and then grabbed the lapels of his jacket and pulled so her lips crashed to his. He didn’t hesitate to wrap his arms around her and kiss her back. He’d missed her so much. 

Belle stumbled back until Cam had her pressed against a desk, his hands rested on her hips and her hands held his neck.

“Belle?” Cam mumbled against her lips, they needed to stop, anyone could walk in but God he had missed the taste of her “Belle” he tried again a bit more forcefully but she was now kissing his neck and he was losing any last shred of restraint he had “fuck it” he decided and hoisted Belle up onto the counter. No one ever came in around this time anyway. Belle squeaked when he grabbed her thighs and lifted her feet from the ground but then he was stood in between her legs. She hooked her ankles together behind his back, bringing him closer if that were even possible. 

They pulled back for a moment and smiled before crashing their lips back together “I brought you lunch” she giggled against his lips but made no move to stop.

“I’d rather devour you” he whispered and nibbled on her neck. She leaned back as he trailed his tongue down her throat towards her breasts. He undid the buttons of her blouse and pulled the cups of her bra down, taking a nipple in his mouth, sucking gently. 

She moaned and the elbows she had been leaning on gave way, Cam followed her down, now kissing her flat belly “Cam” she pulled at his hair to bring his lips back to hers.

They were so lost in each other that they didn’t hear the bell chime above the door, they didn’t hear someone shout ‘Dad!’, and if they had they would’ve had time to hide what they were doing. But instead the curtain was pulled back, and the one person in the whole of Storybrooke that they wouldn’t have wanted to catch them was standing there looking furious.

“What the fuck?!”

Belle and Gold pulled away abruptly and Belle pushed Cameron back slightly so she could jump off the desk. She stayed turned away while she did her blouse back up and Gold just stared wide eyed at the person stood in the doorway.

“Will” Gold eventually acknowledged that his son was standing there. That his son had just caught him with his head between his girlfriend’s breasts. Belle looked up at him worriedly before she turned to face her boyfriend. 

“Will I-“ Belle tried to start explaining. But how do you tell your boyfriend that you’ve fallen for his father.

“What the fuck did I just walk in on?” Will asked angrily.

“Will calm down” Gold walked towards his son with his hands up in surrender. 

“Calm down?” Will roared “tell me what the fuck is going on?”

“We didn’t want you to find out this way” Belle tried to help Cam to explain “we’re so sorry Will”

“You’re telling me you two” he pointed between the pair “have been fucking behind my back?” 

“That’s not how it is” Gold jumped in. He was sorry Will found out like this but he wasn’t going to have what he had with Belle degraded to a few quick shags. 

“Oh really” Will shook his head and laughed incredulously “you think she cares about you? You’re just an old man, she’s probably doing you for a bet or something, and no way would a girl like her want you when she can have a younger, fitter man” 

Belle stormed forward and slapped Will so hard across the face her hand stung from the impact. Gold felt impressed by her, but he tried to not show it in his face. 

“Don’t you dare talk about me or Cameron that way” she purposely used Golds first name, she thought it might be proof of how close they are “he makes me happier than I’ve ever been”

It was a low blow but she had hated the way he had been talking to Cam and she wanted to hurt him back. 

“Cameron?” he looked at his father “she calls you Cameron?”

“What do you think I make her call me Mr Gold?” Cam said bluntly. His son’s insults had stung a little as they were the exact thoughts that had plagued him since he and Belle had begun their relationship.

Will looked between the Belle and his father, two of the people that he should have been able to trust had betrayed him “you two are not going to do this to me” he got up in his father’s face but Gold didn’t step back. He was not afraid of Will; he knew how to take care of himself.

“I'm sorry but you don’t have much of a choice son” Cam pointed out. This wasn’t how Gold hadn’t wanted things to happen but he now knew, he couldn’t lose Belle, what he felt for her was strong, stronger than any he had ever felt before. He hoped Will would forgive him someday; he didn’t want to lose his son, whether he was actually his father or not, he still loved him. But with the way Will had been treating him since he found out about his true parentage he wasn’t sure they had a relationship to save anymore.

“Don’t ever call me that again” Will jabbed Gold his chest with his index finger “and I do have a choice, you see if you two don’t end this, whatever this is, then maybe the Sheriff might like to hear a story about what happened to Mr Clarke, or at least my version of the night anyway”

Gold stepped back stunned, and looked at Belle, who looked like she had seen a ghost “what do you mean your version?” Belle said quietly.

“I see I got your attention” Will grinned and then he pondered his story “well maybe you two have been carrying on for months, and it was in fact you two who hit Mr Clarke with a car, and maybe you broke up after the stress of the accident got to you both and you” he pointed at Belle “only began dating me to make my dad jealous to get him back and one night you got drunk and told me all about the accident” Will finished his little made up story and he smiled at the stricken faces of his father and girlfriend “I’ll let you two discuss that one for a while, I’m going to go to Granny’s and Belle” she looked over at him with tears in her eyes “you better meet me there in an hour and be a dutiful girlfriend or I’ll be heading to the station” and with that Will sauntered out of the shop.

Gold and Belle stood in silence until the sound of the shop bell and the door slamming jolted them into action.

“You need to tell me what you know about that night” Cam guided her to a chair. He was unaware anyone else knew about that fateful night apart from him and Will, so to find out that Belle somehow knows something was quite a shock.

“What night?” Belle tried to play it off, she’d tried to block that night from her mind. 

“You know what night sweetheart” he said gently.

Belle sighed she didn’t want to relive that night “me and Will had been out of town to a concert with a couple of friends, we’d dropped them off and were driving back into town, we’d just crossed the town line when-“ she stopped as she remembered what happened next “Will didn’t see him, not until the last second but it was too late” she buried her face in her hands and sobbed as she remembered the car hitting Mr Clarke “I told Will to stop, I screamed at him but he just kept driving” 

“Belle its ok” Gold wrapped his arms around her. Will hadn’t told him anyone else was there that night, he had told Gold that it was just him and he had panicked. Gold had been working as a detective still at the time and had been on duty that night when Will had phoned him in a panic. He’d raced to his son and Will had taken him to the scene of the accident, Mr Clarkes body was lying at the side of the road, they had been certain he was dead. He should’ve called it in, he knows that now, but Will had been in such a state that Gold made a stupid decision and covered it up. He told Will to go home and he would deal with it, he never told Will what he did, figuring it was best he didn’t know.

“I tried to go to the sheriff but Will told me” she paused “he told me that I couldn’t, he said that if I went to the sheriff then I would be in trouble too for leaving the scene” she stopped to think for a minute “I never told Will but I called the sheriff anonymously the next morning and told them, but I heard later on that they couldn’t find a body, I don’t know what happened” 

“Will called me for help” Gold told her.

“We could go to the sheriff, tell them what really happened before Will gives them that bullshit story” Belle was starting to panic.

“Belle” he stopped her rambling “Will would go to prison and I would go down with him and maybe even you” he told her.

“What?” Belle looked scared.

“I covered up the accident” Gold explained “I fucked up that night and I made sure no one found Mr Clarke, if Will goes down for the accident, I’ll go with him for covering it up and you would definitely get in trouble for keeping it secret”

“Oh god” Belle cried “what are we going to do?”

Gold shook his head, he didn’t want to say the next sentence but they didn’t have a choice “you have to go to Will” 

“What? No” she shook her head “I don’t want Will, I want you”

“Aye and I want you” His voice was thick with emotion “but right now we don’t have a choice” 

Belle sobbed into Cams chest, her tears soaking the fabric, they clung to each other for as long as they could before they neared the time limit Will had set them.

“I promise you I will fix this Belle” he cradled her face in his palms “we will be together” he vowed. She kissed him, no tongues, no clashing of teeth, just the love she felt for Gold. She didn’t know when they would be able to see each other again and she needed to kiss him. To show him how much should love him.

“I love you” she murmured.

“I love you too” Cam smiled sadly “my beautiful Belle”

Belle slowly gathered up her jacket and bag and looked back at Cam one more time, he looked as broken as she felt. If she hadn’t had come to the shop then Will wouldn’t have found out, they could’ve still been together but now they were being ripped apart. 

“Bye Cam” she said quietly and pulled the curtain back to leave the shop.

“Goodbye Belle” Cam said to her retreating back. When he was safely alone, he broke down, he didn’t normally cry but he couldn’t stop the tears, he’d lost her, and he had no idea how he was going to fix it. When he had gathered himself he started on a plan of action, starting with the one man in town who also knew about that night, someone Cam had never told Will about in case of a situation like this one.

He pulled out his cell and dialled “Jefferson?” he greeted the man who answered “I need a favour?” 

Belle walked into Granny’s, she couldn’t hide the fact she had been crying and hoped that no one would stop her to ask what was wrong. She saw Will sat in a corner booth and glared at the back of his head. She hated him; there was no two ways about it.

She slid into the seat opposite Will said glared at him; she thought she saw a brief flicker of fear pass over Wills face before it was replaced by a smug grin.

“Was beginning to wonder if you’d show” he looked at the clock on the wall.

“You didn’t give me much of a choice did you?” she growled back.

Will just smiled smugly again and took a sip of his drink. 

“You know you won’t keep me from him forever right?” it was Belles turn to look smug, it was fake, she honestly didn’t know how they were going to fix this but she wasn’t about to let Will beat them either. 

“You’re mine Belles” Will whispered angrily.

“I’m not yours Will” she replied “you are blackmailing me, I’m Cams, always will be” it probably wasn’t the best idea to goad him but she was so angry. She partly hoped he would kick off and then everyone would know what was going on.

Will grabbed her hand, to onlookers they looked like a couple in love, but in reality his grip was painful and Belle had to fight back tears.

“You. Are. Mine” he enunciated each word through clenched teeth “not his. He doesn’t deserve you. He’s an old cripple. I’d never live it down if you left me for that”

“That?” Belle almost screamed “that man is ten times the man you will ever be” 

“Please” Will scoffed and Belle had the urge to slap his smug face again. 

“You’re pathetic” she told him “having to blackmail a girl to stay with you”

“Better than being a slag” he shot back “shagging your boyfriend’s dad behind his back, least now I know why you were never interested in sex with me, at least I don’t feel guilty anymore for Ashley”

Belles head shot up, she’d suspected Will wasn’t faithful, but Ashley? Her friend??

“So why do this?” Belle asked “why force me to be with you when you have been seeing other people behind my back”

“Because, I’m not losing you to my father” Will said matter of factly “I’d never live it down”

Belle shook her head, Will had lost the plot. She could understand him being angry about her and his father but to do this just because he doesn’t want to lose face in front of his friends is just crazy.

“Cam will find a way to stop you, you know?” she said confidently. Adding ‘I hope’ in her mind.

“We shall see” Will snapped back.


	12. Chapter 12

Gold was in the back storeroom of his shop, pacing back and forth nervously, awaiting the arrival of his friend, probably one of the only people he could class as a friend in this town, Jefferson Madden.

He heard the bell chime and stopped suddenly.

“Gold?” he heard the familiar voice call out for him and he stepped through the curtain.

“Jeff” Gold greeted and shook hands with the man in front of him. He was a quirky sort of man with a penchant for unusual hats, not the sort of man you’d think would be friends with Cam.

“What can I do for you?” Jeff asked getting straight to the point. Gold didn’t really know where to start, with the night of the accident, about Belle, about Wills threat. He decided to just start from the beginning.

“Do you remember that night?” he started, and Jeff nodded, he didn’t need to say which night “well Will is threatening to blame me for the accident and have me sent down and I need to find a way to make sure that can’t happen”

“Why the hell would Will want you sent down?” Jeff asked shocked.

“Well” now for the difficult part “now I may have been having a relationship of sorts with his girlfriend, and he found out” Gold waited for Jeff to yell at him, what he wasn’t expecting was the peal of laughter that erupted out of his mouth “this isn’t funny Jeff” he huffed.

“I’m sorry Gold” Jeff snickered “but it is a little” 

Gold mumbled under his breath “anyway, Will found out and has basically said that if Belle doesn’t be with him then he’ll be straight over the Sheriff’s station” 

“Wow” Jeff needed to process for a moment “so her names Belle huh?” 

“Yeah Belle” Gold smiled at the thought of her. Jeff noticed the little quirk of his friends lips at the mention of Belle “anyway you helped me that night but Will doesn’t know that, he doesn’t know what really happened after I sent him home”

“You never told him” Jeff asked. 

“I thought maybe if he carried on believing what he thought happened had happened then maybe he would change his attitude” Gold explained “obviously that plan backfired, little bastard just thinks he’s invincible now”. 

“So what are you going to do?” Jeff questioned.

“Will thinks he can get me sent down for causing and covering up a death” Gold answered “what he doesn’t know is there was no death”. Gold had gone home that night with the intention of telling Will that Mr Clarke wasn’t dead but when he had got home that night Will had been on the phone to someone, Gold assumed it was one of his friends, bragging about how he could get away with anything while his dad was on the force.

Gold had sent Will home that night believing that he had killed Mr Clarke, he was about to hide the body when he heard a small gasping breath come from the man on the ground. He wasn’t dead, he was in a very bad way but now Gold didn’t know what to do, he could have called an ambulance but then he’d have to explain what he was doing there and there would’ve been an investigation which would’ve led them to Wills car eventually. He had called Jeff in a panic, knowing his friend only lived a five minute walk from the accident site, when his friend had got there they came up with a plan.

They drove Mr Clarke to the hospital in the next town over; they had lied about where they had found the man and left before giving their real names. No one ever came looking for them, and as it turned out when Gold had made an enquiry, Mr Clarke had suffered amnesia; he couldn’t remember who he was, where he lived, anything. 

“But how are we going to find a man when we don’t know where the hospital would've sent him” Jeff wondered. Gold had told him what happened with regards to the amnesia.

“That’s where I need your help” Gold grinned “I can’t get too involved in this without Will finding out but you can. Start with the hospital, say you are a relative who is trying to locate your uncle who went missing six months ago, say you believe he was in an accident and that you believe he had amnesia, they may be able to inform you where he went after leaving the hospital” 

“Ok” Jeff nodded “and if they won’t tell me anything”

“Then it’s back to square one” Gold sighed.

Jeff tipped his hat and left the shop, leaving Gold alone with his thoughts. He pulled out his cell and looked at the couple of pictures that he had on there, he didn’t take many but Belle had stolen his phone the night at the cabin and had taken a selfie of the pair of them in bed, he should’ve deleted it, anyone could’ve seen it but it was a good photo, he looked happy and in love and she looked so beautiful with her hair a mess in the afterglow of their lovemaking. He was going to do anything it took to get her back; he’d go to the end of the world to be with her. 

His phone beeped and he looked down, it was Belle

I LOVE YOU CAMERON GOLD XXX

It was so simple and yet it said everything he needed to hear. He quickly typed out a reply 

I LOVE YOU TOO MY BEAUTIFUL BELLE XXX

Jeff better come through for him, he had no idea what else he could do if the hospital ended up being a dead end. 

Belle smiled as she looked down at her cell, she had snuck out the back to the bathroom to send a message to Cam. She might not be able to see him and be with him but it didn’t mean she couldn’t send him the odd message to let him know she was thinking about him. 

She looked at her watch and was relieved to realise she needed to get back to the library. She left the bathroom and saw Will looking over at Ruby who was leant over cleaning a table. Belle cleared her throat.... loudly.

“What?” Will snapped.

“If I’m to act like a dutiful girlfriend” she mimicked his voice “then the least you could do is not eye up my best friend”

“After what I just caught you doing with my father I don’t think you're in a position to tell me what I can and can’t do” Will growled quietly 

“I’ve got to get back to work” Belle said and stood up from her seat.

“I don’t think so” Will went to grab her hand again but she dodged him this time “do you think I’m stupid?” Belle had to bite her tongue to stop the reply that wanted to shoot out of her mouth “you’ll run straight back to him if I let you go bow”

“Grow up Will” Belle barked angrily “some of us actually work for a living and I have to get back, I think I also have some firing to do as well” she smiled smugly at the thought of Ashley.

“You haven’t got the guts to fire her” Will grinned.

“Watch me” Belle grinned and walked away before Will had a chance to stop her. She walked down the street toward the library; she looked over at the pawn shop and saw a man leaving the building. He was fairly tall with a rather unusual hat upon his head. Belle thought she had seen him before but couldn’t place where. She wanted to go over to Cameron but knew she couldn’t, with a heavy sigh she entered the library.

Ashley was stood at the circulation desk when Belle entered, she smiled at Belle like there was nothing wrong and she hadn’t been shagging Belles boyfriend behind her back. Belle knew she was a hypocrite, she had been sleeping with her boyfriend’s father after all but this felt different somehow. Ashley had been a good friend to her since she moved to Storybrooke, she’d confided things about Will to the blonde while they had been working and she felt betrayed.

“Hey Belle” Ashley smiled but it soon faded when she saw the look on Belles face “what’s wrong?” 

“What makes you think something’s wrong?” Belle smiled widely and joined Ashley behind the desk and waited for the children to leave. When the library was empty Belle turned to Ashley.

“I’ve been meaning to talk to you about something” she said.

“What’s up?” Ashley didn’t look at Belle and continued to stack the cart with the returned books. 

“Nothing much” Belle shrugged “I was just wondering when you were planning on telling me you’ve been sleeping with Will?” 

Belle stepped back as an avalanche of books fell from the cart as Ashley turned to face Belle “What?” the blonde tried to act innocent but Belle saw right through it, she wondered how she hadn't noticed before.

“You heard me” Belle sniped.

“I don’t know what you mean” Ashley shook her head and Belle had to roll her eyes.

“He told me Ash so just tell me the truth” Belle urged.

“I’m so sorry Belle” Ashley broke down in tears “I didn’t mean for it to happen”

“You didn’t mean to sleep with your friend’s boyfriend?” Belle said sarcastically.

“I... I....” Ashley struggled to think of an answer.

“I’m not going to sack you over this Ashley” Belle told her supposed friend. Ashley looked relieved “Don’t get me wrong, we are so not Ok, the only reason I’m keeping you on is because you have Alexandra to take care of but believe me our friendship is done”

Alexandra was Ashley’s eight year old daughter from a relationship with her high school sweetheart Sean.

“Thank you” Ashley mumbled and looked down at the ground. Belle felt awful as she knew she would have to explain how she could stay with Will but not remain friends with Ashley. 

“Yeah” Belle muttered and stalked off to her office. She closed the door with a loud thud behind her and moved around to sit at her desk. She stared at the closed door and was reminded of when Cameron had been in her office, when they had first said they were in love with each other. Belle broke down; she buried her face in her hands and sobbed. She wished that she had a time machine, she would go back just a few hours, a few hours ago she was happy and in love and she could be with Cameron. Now that was all shot to hell because Will had caught them and they were now being blackmailed.

Belle jumped when she heard a knock on her door “come in” she swiped at her eyes quickly just assuming it was Ashley needing something. She was surprised to see Ruby pop her head around the door.

“Hey sweetie” Ruby smiled and walked inside. She closed the door with a soft click and sat down in the chair opposite Belle. She saw the mascara streaks on her friend’s cheeks immediately “what happened?”

“Nothing” Belle gave a pained smile. There was no use trying to lie to her best friend.

“Tell me” Ruby urged.

“Oh Ruby everything is such a mess” Belle began to cry again. Ruby jumped up from her seat and moved around the desk to envelope Belle in a hug.

“Shhh everything’s ok” Ruby soothed gently and stroked Belles brunette locks.

“Will caught us” Belle mumbled into Ruby's shoulder. 

“Caught you….. Doing what?” Belle just raised an eyebrow at Ruby “oh…… oh!” she exclaimed when it dawned on her what Belle meant “what happened then?”

“It’s a long story” Belle sighed “he's gone crazy Rubes, he doesn’t want to admit to his friends that I left him for his father so he's now blackmailing us, I can’t see or speak to Cam, and I've got to carry on being Wills girlfriend”

“What has Gold said about it all?” Ruby asked. She pulled away from Belle and went back around the desk to the other chair.

“He’s trying to find a way out of this but it’s hopeless” Belle sniffled.

“Nothing is ever hopeless” Ruby assured Belle “and this explains why I just had a very cute guy come into the diner and give me this” she pulled an envelope out of her pocket with Belles name scrawled across the front”

“What guy?” Belle scrunched up her eyebrows in confusion.

“I don’t know his name, tall, cute, cool hat, very cute” Ruby giggled and Belle had to smile slightly.

“I think I saw that guy coming out of the pawn shop on my way back here” Belle mused.

“Anyway he pulled me to one side, told me I needed to make sure you were ok and asked me if I could pass this letter on to you when I saw you” Ruby leant over and handed Belle the cream envelope.

Belle took the envelope and turned it over in her hands, it was blank apart from her name but she recognised the handwriting as Cameron’s. She smiled that he had gone to the trouble of figuring out how to get in touch with her without Will knowing. She put the letter in her desk drawer and decided to read it when she was alone.

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

A week later it was the night of the annual Storybrooke Fairy-tale Ball, and the whole town had been invited. It was pretty much just an excuse for the richer half of the community to show off all their money and snicker at the less fortunate.

Belle was attending with Will reluctantly, she was miserable being stuck in a relationship – not stuck, blackmailed – when the man she truly loved was always nearby. She had made an extra effort with her appearance tonight, she knew Cam would be there, she hadn’t seen him in a week and she missed him.

She was wearing a floor length gold shimmering dress with a slit up to her thigh which was just this side of risqué. Her hair was swept up and to one side and the drop earrings that Cam had given her not long ago hung from her ears.

She walked in, behind Will, who was busy talking to one of his buddies to even think about escorting her in to the ball like a gentleman, and her eyes immediate found her love. He was wearing a black suit and black tie; he had forgone his usual waistcoat and just settled for a white shirt and tie. He looked hot, Belle noted, and she couldn’t help but wonder if it was for her benefit like she had done for him. Seeming to sense being watched Cam turned towards her, his eyes meeting hers at last.

For a moment it felt like they were the only two people in the room until Belle felt herself being pulled away. The grip on her hand was almost painful. 

“Will let go” she shoved at his arm “you’re hurting me”

“Well if you stop making googly eyes at my father I wouldn’t need to would I?” he barked back at her leaning close to her ear so no one else would hear.

“Sorry” she mumbled, although really not sorry. 

“Much better” Will grinned in triumph “now let’s get a drink” 

Belle followed dutifully behind and managed a quick peek over at Cam who looked worried. She sent him a look to say she was fine but she knew he would know she was lying. 

An hour later and Belle stood with Will and a few of his friends; no one had spoken to her in about half an hour. Cam was stood about six foot away from her chatting with mayor Mills and Belle had never been more miserable. If she was stood on Cams arm she knew he’d always include her in conversations, he always valued her opinion. Belle needed a breather so she pulled on Wills arm and told him she was going to the bathroom to which he just replied that that better be the only place she is going. Belle just rolled her eyes and stomped off. The queue for the downstairs bathroom was long so she headed up the winding staircase to the upstairs bathroom, guests weren't really permitted upstairs but she didn't care. 

Cameron was chatting with the mayor, Regina Mills, when he caught a glimpse of gold out of the corner of his eye and watched as Belle climbed the stairs slowly in her high heels and made a split second decision. Will was too engrossed in whoever the blond was, he was talking - no flirting – with to notice if he slipped out of the room for a short while.

“Can you just excuse me for a moment Regina” he said to the mayor and ducked away before she could answer. Gold knew this house pretty well after a brief fling with Cora Mills a few years ago so he headed down a deserted corridor and up a different set of stairs that lead to a bedroom he knew to be two doors away from the bathroom. He inched the door open just in time to see Belle walking very slowly back towards the stairs. Just as she passed him he leant out a grabbed her arm and pulled her into the bedroom. She shrieked and turned to smack her assailant until she saw him. Her hand was raised in mid-air and the look of shock on her face made Cam chuckle. 

“Cam?” she breathed, not quite believing he was there.

“Missed me?” he smiled. She answered by throwing her arms around his neck, and he almost stumbled to the floor from the sheer force of her actions “I take that as a yes” His voice was muffled by her hair.

She pulled back but rested her forehead against his “this is dangerous you know” she said.

“I know” Gold replied sadly “but I couldn’t go another day without kissing you” he added as he brought his lips down to meet hers. Belle felt whole again when Cams lips were on hers, she’d felt so lost without him this past week. 

“I missed you so much” Belle wiped away a tear that feel down her cheek. 

“I missed you too sweetheart” Cam cupped her cheek and used the pad of his thumb to wipe away another tear. 

“What are we going to do?” Belle asked.

“I wish I knew” Gold replied sadly “I’ve been working day and night to find a way to get out of this hole but so far it’s just a lot of dead ends” he stepped back and sat on the edge of the king size poster bed in the middle of the room. Belle walked forward and stood in between his legs and wrapped her arms around him, placing a kiss to the top of his head. 

“You’ll find a way” she said determinedly. She finally found the man she is supposed to spend her life with, there’s no way she was going to let him go.

“I’m glad you have so much faith in me” Gold smiled up at her. She dipped her head to place what was meant to be a chaste kiss on his lips but he captured her in a passionate kiss that had her heart racing. He leaned back on the bed and she followed moving her knees up onto the bed so she was straddling him.

“Cam?” she mumbled against his lips “I love you”

“I love you too Belle” he knew they couldn’t go much further but God he wanted to. But if they were gone much longer Will would probably begin to notice and that wouldn’t be good for either of them. 

She sat up, looking down at the man she loved; he reached up and pushed a stray strand of hair behind her ear.

“You look beautiful this evening Belle” he looked at her with so much love that Belle couldn’t help the tear that fell “don’t cry”

“I’m sorry” she sobbed quietly “no one’s ever looked at me the way you are right now, and now I have to leave you and go downstairs and pretend you are nothing more than my boyfriend’s father when all I want is to walk down the stairs on your arm”

“Belle I promise you, one day soon we will be together and I will be the proudest man in the entire world to have you on my arm” he sat up and wrapped his arms around her waist “but for now, we keep up pretences” 

Belle nodded, knowing he was right but still feeling hopeless “I know” 

She stood up and smoothed the few wrinkles out of her dress hoping Will wouldn’t notice, although that would probably involve him actually taking notice if her so she was probably safe. Cam sat on the edge of the bed and watched Belle as she made herself look presentable; he felt a pang in his chest at the thought of her leaving. She turned back to him after checking her appearance in the mirror and kissed him again. Cupping his cheeks she tried to poor all the love she had for him into the kiss, it wasn’t goodbye, it was a see you soon. 

“I love you” she whispered.

“I love you too” he murmured back “more than anything” he added. 

Taking one last chaste kiss from him she headed to the door, glancing back she smiled and took a deep breath as she opened the door slowly. She checked the hallway and when she was sure no one was about she walked out and down the stairs. Gold sat on the bed to collect himself before returning to the party, rubbing a hand down his face he sighed, he could still smell her perfume on him, still feel her lips against his. He needed her back!

Gold glanced over at the clock and decided he had better make his way back downstairs before Will noticed that he had slipped out at the same time as Belle. He pulled open the door and headed back down the back staircase so no one would see him. Just as Gold made it back into the main ballroom he heard Wills voice shouting over the crowd. He saw Neal and Emma stood at the back of the room so he made his way over to them.

“What's my idiot brother up to now?” Neal asked his fiancée just as Gold arrived by them.

“I hate to think” Gold answered before Emma could. The three of them stood and watched as Will stood about five stairs up the winding staircase so he could see over the crowd.

“Ladies and Gents” he called over the quietening crowd “sorry to disturb your evening but I have an announcement I would like to share with you all”

Gold tried to find Belle amongst the crowd but her small stature – even in six inch heels – made her difficult to find. 

“This evening before we came here, I asked my beautiful girlfriend Belle to marry me, and she said yes!” Will held out his hand and then Gold saw her ascend the few steps to stand next to his son. 

Cameron felt his heart stop as Wills words registered, he was going to marry Belle, and she would be forever Wills. Belle caught his eye and Gold could see she was just as shocked by Wills announcement as he was; she looked scared even as she tried to plaster a fake smile on her face.

“Wow I didn’t see that coming” Neal clapped along with the rest of the guests.

“I don’t think anyone did” Cameron sighed.


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for the delay, i struggled with this chapter as its a bit of a filler chapter. It's not great but i wanted to get something out. Most of the next chapter is written so shouldn't be too long to wait for the next part. Anyway hope you enjoy!

Belle stood on the pedestal and gazed at herself in the mirror. Tears pooled in her eyes and the seamstress gave her a satisfied smile. The only problem was they weren’t tears of joy. She was currently stood in a wedding dress store wearing what had to be the most ridiculous dress and the store assistants all seemed happy to send her down the aisle looking like a Disney princess. 

The dress she was wearing had been picked by Will, after the shock announcement two weeks ago at the Mayors ball he had started the preparations for their big day. Belle had slapped him as soon as they were alone after that but he had merely laughed and sauntered away. Cameron had disappeared and she hadn’t spoken to him since that night so she didn’t know his thoughts on the latest development. She could only assume he was as miserable and broken hearted as she was. 

The letter she had received from him via Ruby was safely locked away in her desk drawer, away from where Will would come across it. It was that letter alone that made her know for definite that he wouldn’t give up, despite the wedding now being added to the mix. He had promised her that whatever happens he would fight for her, and that he loved her more than anything.

“Oh my god” Belle spun round awkwardly in the huge dress to be faced with the horrified look on Ruby’s face. 

“Don’t say a word” Belle grumbled and smoothed her hands down the front of the dress in the hopes it might flatten the ruffles even just a bit “Will chose it, he’s trying to make me look like an idiot”

“You look ridiculous” Ruby muttered and Belle shot her s look.

“How is that not saying a word?” Belle cried.

“Sorry” Ruby mumbled “but honestly Belles, this is getting out of hand, he’s chosen your dress, the venue, the guest list, and he’s decided everything down to the shoes you’ll be wearing” 

Belle looked at her best friend confused about the last statement.

“He came into the diner and gave this to me to give to you” Ruby explained and handed Belle a bag containing a shoe box. Belle retrieved the box and pulled off the lid.

“He can’t be serious” Belle exclaimed and pulled a silver stiletto from the box. They were covered in glitter and the heel must’ve been about seven inches high “I can’t wear these; they look like something a stripper would wear”

“He said if you didn’t wear the shoes he’d be very disappointed” Ruby mocked Wills voice as she told Belle what he had said.

Belle looked down sadly and turned back to the mirror; she looked at herself again and tried to fight back the tears.

“Have you heard anything from him?” Ruby looked up Belle. She didn’t need to say his name.

“No” Belle whispered and stood down from the pedestal “can you get me out of this thing?” she gestured to the fastenings on the back of the dress. Ruby went to work on the corset strings, working silently as she pulled each string through the holes, until Belle could lower it down and step out of the material. 

Belle stepped behind the screen and retrieved her normal clothes, while Ruby waited diligently. The smaller brunette appeared a few minutes later.

“Come on” Ruby put her arm around Belle and she guided her friend out of the store “let’s get out of here”

“Yeah” Belle nodded absentmindedly.

They walked back towards the library where Belle was due to start work. Ruby hugged her and bid her goodbye and headed off in the direction on Granny’s. Belle walked through the library towards her office, Ashley tried to smile at her by she just kept her head down and kept walking. She trudged into her office with her head still down and turned to take off her jacket and hung it on the back of the door. She turned back to her desk and almost stumbled back into the door when she found someone sitting in her chair, leaning back with his ankle resting on his knee and his hands steeped under his chin with a smug smile on his face.

“Hello” he smiled.

“What.... what are you doing here?” Belle tried to calm her racing heart.

He stood from the chair and rounded the desk to stand in front of her “I can go if you want me to” he pouted.

“No” she cried and wrapped her arms around him.

“I missed you” he whispered into her hair.

“You have no idea how much I’ve missed you too Cam” Belle pulled back slightly and rested her forehead against his.

Cameron smiled and kissed her gently and then pulled back.

“How are you here?” Belle asked

“I needed to tell you something” he shrugged “and I couldn’t go another day without telling you”

“What did you want to tell me?” she smiled.

“Let me see what was it I wanted to say” he teased and flinched when she smacked his arm playfully “oh yeah I remember” he pushed a piece of hair behind her ear and cupped her cheek “I love you” 

“You risked coming here to tell me that” Belle couldn’t stop the smile spreading further on her face.

“I think it’s very important” he said.

“I love you too” she said back and moved forward to kiss him again. 

“I’m trying my hardest to sort this mess out” Gold told her “I will not let you marry Will” 

“Can’t we just run away” Belle joked. Although she actually hoped he said yes!

“I think if we did that then Will would be straight to the sheriff and we’d be on the run for the rest of our lives. I don’t want that life for you” he told her.

“I know” she sighed “this all just sucks” she then pouted

“It sucks big time” he joked and she smiled.

“How long before you have to leave?” she asked.

“I’ve got it on good authority that Will is on the other side of town right now, so maybe half an hour” he answered and moved closer to her. She briefly wondered who was spying on Will but then decided not to dwell and savour the time they had.

“Perfect” she grinned as her hands went to his tie. Who knows when they would be alone again? If ever.  
\---------------------------------------------------------------------  
Exactly half an hour later Gold walked around from the back of the library and looked both ways up and down the deserted street, satisfied there was no one around that would question why he was coming from there he headed across the street over to his shop. He knew he shouldn’t have gone to see Belle but he couldn’t stop himself, the wedding was drawing closer and Jeff was having no luck finding Clarke, he needed to spend time with her now just in case.

He walked into the store and the little bell jingled above him, Neal stood behind the counter and looked up when he heard the door.

“Did you get your errand done?” Neal asked.

“Yes, thank you for watching the shop” Gold answered and carried on walking into the back room.

“So are you going to tell me what was so important?” Neal probed his father but Gold ignored him in favour of starting to tinker with a project that was sat on his desk. He obviously couldn’t tell him the truth ‘oh yeah I just needed to pop out and bang your brothers fiancée on her desk, no biggie’. Gold shook his head at that thought, he wished he could tell the truth but he doubted right now that Neal would understand and he couldn’t lose another son.

“I’ve got to get going anyway” Neal interrupted Cameron’s thoughts.

“Ok son” Gold nodded “thanks again for helping out, Regina has been on my case lately for shutting the shop when I feel like it and I could do without her annoying me at the moment”

“I know something is going on Pops” Neal was far too observant for his own good “is this to do with Will and him finding out about his real dad?”

“Partly” Gold bent the truth slightly “don’t worry though, everything will be fine” he assured his son “go on get out of here, Emma will be thinking you’ve been kidnapped”

“She wishes” Neal laughed and grabbed his coat “call me if you need anything”

Gold nodded and watched his eldest walk away, he sighed as he wondered what his reaction was going to be, if or when he found out about his relationship with Belle. If everything worked out then the truth would be coming out soon. Cameron looked up at the clock and decided to work on the locket that had been brought in recently, he’d forgotten who brought it in but it needed a new clasp. He set about removing the broken parts, it was a fiddly job and one he knew would keep his mind occupied for a few hours at least. 

It must have been about three hours later when Gold heard the bell above the front door chime signalling someone’s arrival. He figured someone coming in this late must be coming to pay their rent. He stood from his seat, his joints protesting at the movement, and he headed through the curtain. He grumbled under his breath when he saw who was stood at the counter admiring some ruby red shoes he had encased under the glass.

“Miss Mills, what can I do for you?” Gold barked.

“Good evening Mr Gold, I’m here for my pendant of course” Zelena grinned and Cameron groaned, of course the locket belonged to her. It was Regina that had brought it in. He knew the mayor would never wear anything so tacky, he should’ve realised it was Zelena’s, he would’ve refused to fix it on account of he didn’t want the crazy red head anywhere near him.

“I’ve just finished it, I’ll fetch it now” Gold said and turned away, completely unaware that she had decided to follow him out the back. He stumbled when he turned around with the necklace and she was stood in front of him “Miss Mills, customers are not permitted back here” 

“I thought we were friends Mr Gold” Zelena pouted and continued to wander around “I know you let your friends back here”

Something about that statement gave Cameron pause but he kept his face impassive “haven’t you heard, I don’t have friends dearie” 

“Oh well that’s not true” Zelena grinned and walked over to Gold, he stepped back to keep a safe distance from her, something was off about her “you looked pretty friendly with that little librarian not so long back” she leant into him.

“What the hell are you on about now you crazy woman?” Gold tried to remain calm but he could hear the alarm bells going off in his head.

“Did you ever stop to think about why Will came here that day? I mean he wasn’t even talking to you so why would he all of a sudden come here at the exact moment you were doing his girlfriend?” she smirked and stepped back to let Gold process her words.

Gold held onto the desk for support as her words registered, he hadn’t stopped to think about why Will had come to the shop that day, and he had been so focussed on what had happened afterwards that it never even crossed his mind. She was right, he hadn’t been talking to Gold for weeks by that point, and he had no reason to come to the store.

“You told him to come here” he stated rather than asked her.

“I told you that you would regret rejecting me” Zelena declared.

Zelena had been walking up the street when she saw Belle enter the shop that day, she had gone over to the side alleyway and looked in through the window just as Gold was hoisting Belle up onto the desk and began kissing her. Zelena had been shocked, she had suspected that Gold had a crush on his son’s girlfriend but never in a million years had she thought they would do something like that. 

She had exited the alley and bumped straight into Will of all people, blinded by jealousy she had begun talking to Will and encouraged him to go into the pawn shop. He had told her that he hadn’t spoken to his father in months but Zelena had been very persuasive in getting the young man just to go in and see him. 

“Do you have any idea what you have done?” Cameron raged. He was furious!

“You were the one doing the dirty with his girl, whatever happened after he caught you is nothing to do with me, I just thought the poor boy needed to know” Zelena tried to sound innocent but the wicked smile on her face gave her away. She loved every minute of destroying his life.

“Get out!” Gold shouted. He strode across the floor and grabbed her arm and roughly yanked her through the store to the front door.

“Get off me” Zelena screamed and tried to pull her arm free.

He pulled the door open and roughly shoved her through before slamming it. The blind on the door rattled and almost came loose from the sheer force of his actions. Gold breathed heavily as he wandered back through the shop. He could hear her screaming in the street and hoped that the sheriff would appear and have her arrested for disturbing the peace. Or maybe have her committed to an insane asylum!

He leant against his desk and attempted to control his breathing as he tried to process the last five minutes. That witch had sent Will to the shop that day, if she hadn’t of been such a crazy stalker then she wouldn’t have seen him and Belle together and Will wouldn’t have caught them. They would still be sneaking around but none of the blackmail and the sham wedding would be happening. If he hadn’t of rejected Zelena she wouldn't have felt the need for payback.

But then he had to think, if he hadn’t of been having an affair with Belle none of this stuff would be happening, all of it was his fault. He could’ve rejected Belle, however much it would have hurt, he could have said no. But he was weak, and a coward, he knew he could never have stayed away from her. 

He walked around his desk and pulled out the bottle of scotch he kept stashed there. He poured himself a generous finger of the amber liquid and sat down, he swirled the alcohol around as he contemplated his next move. The wedding was a matter of weeks away and he needed to put an end to this madness once and for all. He pulled out his cell and dialled Jeff's number.

“Hello Gold” Jeff chirped happily.

“Please tell me that happy voice means you found him?” Gold pleaded.

“Not yet” Jeff replied.

“So what the hell have you got to be so happy about?” Gold barked.

“Well I haven’t found him yet but” he added the ‘but’ quickly before Gold exploded at him again “I’m very close”

“How close?” Gold asked.

“Well I found a relative of Clarke’s who he stayed with after the accident, a brother I think; did you know he had six brothers?” Jeff went off topic and Gold could feel his blood pressure beginning to rise.

“Get to the point Jefferson” Gold groused. Jeff winced at the use of his full first name.

“Right sorry” Jeff muttered “anyway I’m meeting with him later, I told him I’m a cop who is looking into reopening the case of the hit and run on his brother”

“Clever” Gold praised.

“Why thank you” Gold could just imagine Jefferson tilting his hat at the compliment “I’ll call you when I know something” he added.

“Make sure you do” Gold bid goodbye and pressed end call on his phone. He leant back in his chair and stared up at the ceiling, silently sending up a prayer that Jeff comes through for him. He knocked back his tumbler of scotch and winced as the liquid burned his throat, the wedding was in three weeks, and time was running out.

After a couple more tumblers of alcohol he decided on his next move, something that he could actually control. He snatched up his cell phone again and dialled a familiar number.

“Sheriff’s station” a female voice answered.

“Hello Miss Swan” Gold smirked when he heard his daughter in laws voice.

“Hello Gold” Emma replied “what can I do for you?”

“Your father in?” he asked.

“Yeah” she confirmed and then Gold heard shuffling on the other end.

“What can I do for you Mr Gold?” David Nolan’s voice came down the line this time. He was Emma's father and the Sheriff in Storybrooke, Emma was training as his deputy.

“This is a bit delicate and I hope you will be discreet” Gold began to explain and carried on at David’s confirmation that he would be “I need a restraining order taken out against Zelena Mills”

“You want me to issue a restraining order against the mayor’s sister?” David gulped. The one person in town he hated upsetting was Regina. She was scary when she was mad! 

“Is that going to be a problem?” Gold snapped.

“No of course not” David shook his head even though Gold couldn’t see him “can I ask the reason though? You know Regina is going to want to know why you're doing this to her sister”

“She has been stalking me, following me around, spying on me in my shop, I want her kept away from me” Gold explained. He left out the part about Belle and Will, he couldn’t tell anyone that bit “I also want it to include staying away from my sons, their partners and my grandson”

“You think she might be a problem to Emma?” this caught David’s attention. No one hurt his little girl!

Emma looked over at her father at the mention of her name, she gave him a puzzled look but David shook his head at her. She would get an explanation later.

“I think that she is obsessed with me, and she is unstable, I would prefer to be safe than sorry” Gold told him. He had included his son’s partners in the order not just to protect Emma but it would also protect Belle, who he thought would be more in danger from Zelena’s wrath than Emma. 

“I’ll get right on it” David agreed and hung up the phone. Gold placed his cell phone back on his desk and sat back. Now he just needed to wait and see if Jeff would come through for him.


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We have now reached the wedding scene from the first chapter, this is now from Golds POV though. Hope you enjoy!

“Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to celebrate the marriage of William Gold and Belle French” 

Gold sat at the front of the church, his eyes were downcast, the love of his life was marrying his son and he hadn’t been able to stop it. Belle was devastated, he had briefly caught her eye, she had been begging him to do something but he couldn’t. 

He held his breath when the priest got to the part when he asks if anyone objects, honestly he hoped someone would speak up, some poor other sap that may be in love with Belle perhaps. 

The silence dragged on and once again he caught Belles sad eyes, only looking away when he felt his cell buzz in his pocket. He pulled the device out just as the priest started talking again, he probably shouldn’t read a text in the middle of his son’s wedding but this was a farce to him anyway. 

I’VE FOUND HIM! The text read.

Before Gold had time to think he found himself shouting “wait!”

He almost laughed when he saw Belles body sag with relief.

“Do you have something to say my son?” the priest asked and Gold gulped. This was it, the whole town was about to know the truth about Belle and him.

“Yes I do” Gold replied. Belle and Will both turned to face him, she looked hopeful and Will looked.... well Will looked like he was about to kill him but he persevered “I’m sorry but I can’t let this wedding go ahead”

“And why is that?” Will growled through clenched teeth. 

“Because I love Belle” he paused when the whole church let out a collective gasp but again he carried on and held out his hand to Belle who took it gratefully “and I truly am sorry Will, but you know as well as I do, she loves me too” 

He didn’t have time to dodge the fist that flew at his face in that moment. The next thing he registered was Belles arms coming round him as he knelt on the floor. She was running her hands over his face and asking if he was ok, he assured her he was fine.

“For now” Will interrupted the pair “but I told you that you would regret this……. Papa”

“No Will I’m not” Cam got to his feet but held Belles hand in his securely “it’s over”

“It’s far from over old man” Will got in his father’s face but Cam didn’t even blink. Belle looked confused as to why Cam was so confident all of a sudden, she wasn’t complaining about him stopping the wedding but she had to wonder what he had done “have you forgotten what I said would happen?”

“Go ahead” Gold said quietly and walked away, still clutching Belles hand as he went and she walked with him.

When they got outside Cam let out a breath and pulled Belle into his arms “I thought I was going to lose you” he breathed into her ear.

“You definitely pushed it for time” Belle giggled.

“Blame Jeff” he huffed “if he hadn’t just come through for me I’d be killing him for his timing” 

“Are you going to tell me what happened yet?” she asked.

“I will, but maybe we should go somewhere private first, plus I don’t think it’s going to be long before I’m hauled to the station” Gold realised.

Belle nodded, she hadn’t really thought about that. She grabbed his hand and they headed off down the street, she was still wearing the wedding dress that Will had made her wear and she felt uncomfortable. She couldn’t wait to get out of it. They made it to Belles apartment without incident.

“Would you mind helping me?” Belle said as soon as they got inside. She turned and lifted her hair and showed Cam the laced up back of her dress. He immediately went to work undoing the strings and pulling it loose bit by bit.

“I always imagined being married to you on the day I help you out of one of these dresses” he laughed and then realised what he’d said. They’d never talked about the future, never mind marriage.

“That’ll be a much happier day than today has been” Belle replied sadly. She couldn’t wait for the day that she could call Cam her husband.

“At least it worked out in the end” Gold finished up the laces and turned Belle round to face him. She let go of the front of the dress and it pooled at her feet leaving her clad in just her white bra and knickers and some very uncomfortable looking – Cam thought – high heels.

She kissed him hard “I thought I was going to lose you forever today”

His hands landed on her hips and he kissed her back “it’s over sweetheart” 

They kept on kissing until Belle guided Cam backwards and he ended up sitting on the sofa and Belle moved to straddle him. It had been so long since she had had him like this and she knew they probably didn’t have long until the sheriff showed up but she had to have him, she needed to feel close to him.

“Belle” he moaned as she cupped him through his trousers, his hips instinctively thrust into her hand. She kissed his neck as she undid his belt followed by the zipper on his trousers and pulled his length free “I missed you so much” he groaned.

“I missed you too” she whispered and nipped on his earlobe “I love you”

“I love you too” he gripped her hips and pulled her underwear aside as she sunk down on him “my beautiful Belle”

“Cam” she moaned his name. She began to move above him, slowly, savouring every moment, knowing any minute he could be carted away by the sheriff. He kissed her slowly and used his hands on her hips to guide her movements.

DING DONG!

“Please don’t stop” Belle gripped his shoulders and moved a bit quicker, she was so close.

DING DONG!

“Don’t stop” she begged Cam. He snaked a hand in between them and rubbed circles on her swollen bundle of nerves “yes.... Cameron” she screamed her orgasm, faintly aware that whoever was ringing the doorbell would’ve heard her. When Belle clenched around him Cameron came with a low groan against her neck. They breathed heavily for a few moments

DING DONG!

“Sheriff’s department” they heard a male voice yell “open up Belle”

“Everything will be fine” Cam assured Belle when he saw the frightened look on her face “I’ll be back before you know it”

She nodded and disentangled herself from him, and stood on shaky legs. She grabbed her robe from the bathroom and headed to the front door while Cam made himself presentable again.

“Hi David” Belle greeted the sheriff.

“Is he here?” David asked.

“I’m here” Cam appeared behind Belle. He kissed her on the cheek and whispered “I love you” in her ear before departing with David. Belle watched him go, she wanted to cry but held the tears back, and he had said he would be back. He had never let her down yet so she had no reason to believe he would now. 

Over at the station Will stood smugly on the front step watching as the sheriff brought his father over.

“Told you it wasn’t over” he growled in Cams ear so David couldn’t hear him.

“You won’t be looking so smug soon” Cam gave a wicked grin and followed his friend into the station. Will gave a confused look to his dad’s retreating form but shrugged and whistled as he headed down the road towards the bar. He needed a drink. Belle watched the exchange from window, being across the road from the station had its advantages when she was waiting for news about Cam.

“Take a seat Gold” David pulled out a chair in his office. He didn’t need to formally interview his friend but he had to be seen to be taking Wills statement seriously, although he didn’t believe a word of it “Will has made quite the accusation toward you”

“Let me guess” Gold pretended to ponder “I covered up a death”

David seemed shocked that Gold would know what had been said “how do you know that?”

“It’s a long story” Gold sighed “short version is that Will thinks someone is dead but I can assure you they are very much alive”

“Who?” David asked.

“Mr Clarke” Gold answered.

“The guy that ran the pharmacy” David continued to feel confused.

“Yeah that guy” Gold nodded.

“Why would Will think he was dead” the sheriff was getting a headache. He rubbed his temple slowly, he had no idea what was going on.

“because I told him he was” Gold was about to laugh and the Sheriffs pained expression but carried on “ok, the full story, one night when I was working late I got a call from Will, he had been driving back into town when out of nowhere he hit someone, Mr Clarke”

“You should know Will said you were driving” David interrupted.

“What?” Gold hadn’t been expecting that “I wasn’t even there, I was working here. I drove out there when Will called and found him out by the town line. Clarke was on the ground, he was so bloody and battered that I didn’t even think to check his pulse, that man looked dead”

“What happened next?” David asked.

“I sent Will home, told him I would take care of everything” Gold knew that was the wrong thing to say and knew he may get into trouble for that bit.

“And how did you do that?” David was growing increasingly worried by what gold was going to say.

“After Will had gone Mr Clarke made a noise, obviously then I realised he wasn’t dead” Gold paused “I panicked at this point, I called my friend Jeff who loved nearby”

“Jefferson Madden?” David clarified

“Yeah” Gold nodded “he came and in a moment of stupidity we took Clarke to the hospital a couple of towns over. You have to understand I wasn’t thinking straight, at this point I was just thinking about protecting Will and then it all got out of hand”

“So you left Clarke at the hospital before anyone asked you any questions” David guessed the ending and Gold nodded again. He knew how how terrible it all sounded and now he was actually beginning to think that maybe he won’t get away with it, Clarke may not be dead but he did still cover up an accident.

David stayed silent as he contemplated his next move “you made a bad case of judgement that night Gold” he sighed “but if I was in your position I may have done the same. The problem we have is that Will said you were driving and although I don’t believe a word he’s told me I need proof”

Gold sat and thought Will may have just beaten him, until he remembered.... Belle. 

“Belle was in the car with Will” Gold offered up the evidence. 

“I’ll have to get her in for questioning” David thought out loud. Gold didn’t want Belle involved but she was his only proof that he wasn’t involved in the accident. 

Belle sat on her window seat, watching the entrance to the police station. It had been an hour and a half since Cameron had been taken over there and she was starting to worry. She jumped in her seat when her cell began to vibrate on the side table. She snatched it up when she saw David’s name appear on the screen.

“Hello” she answered quickly.

“Belle it’s David” the sheriff greeted “can you come over to the station? I need to ask you some questions”

“Sure, I’ll be there in 5” she hung up the phone and grabbed her coat from by the front door and practically ran down the stairs. She looked both ways as she appeared on the street and when all was clear she skipped across the road, eager to help the sheriff and very eager to see Cameron.

“Hi David” she smiled as she entered. She saw Cam sitting in David’s office and made a beeline to him.

“Hello” she hugged him from behind as he still sat.

“Hello sweetheart” he kissed the side of her face and pulled away to sit in the chair next to Cam.

“How can I help David?” she asked.

“I need you to clarify a few things” David started “can you tell me who was driving the car the night Mr Clarke was hit?”

“Yeah.... it was Will Gold” she answered without hesitation “why do you need to know that?”

“Because Will has told him I was driving the car” Cam answered.

“That jackass” Belle fumed “you weren’t even there” she went on to tell the Sheriff the whole story, and when David was satisfied that Gold played no part in the accident he allowed them to leave.

“I’ll pick Will up as soon as possible” David told Cam “not just for the accident but he also lied to the police” 

“he needs to start taking responsibility for himself” Cam sighed “I can’t do it anymore, I know he was upset about me and Belle but he went too far, I’m done with him”

Belle looked at him sadly but she knew it was for the best; Will needed to learn a lesson. Cam took Belles hand and led her out of the building; he stopped when they got outside and kissed her deeply.

“You have got to be kidding me?!” They turned and saw Will stomping towards them looking angry.

“Hello son” Cam grinned “what can I do for you?” 

“They let you out?” Will asked gobsmacked.

“Why would they keep me in?” Gold asked “I'm not the one who has done anything wrong”

“What is that supposed to be mean?” Will was getting angrier.

“It means that the Sheriff is looking for you, and he’s not happy” Gold shrugged and held onto Belles hand again as he walked off. He was done with Will; he wanted to be alone with Belle. They walked down the street a little towards Golds shop; no one would bother them there. As they turned to cross the road they heard screeching of tyres and an engine roaring towards them.

A car came speeding round the corner and was headed straight for them, it was like it was all happening in slow motion, Cameron managed to push Belle out of the way just as the car slammed into him. He flew up and over the car bonnet and landed on the ground with a sickening thud.

“Cameron!!” Belle screamed as she scrambled over to her loves lifeless body. People were filing out of Granny’s having heard the accident “someone call an ambulance!” she yelled at the gathering crowd. Dr Whale came running over having seen the accident from the diner’s window. Belle was cradling Cam in her arms, pleading for him not to leave her.

“I need you” she whispered “please wake up”

“The ambulance is on its way” Ruby came over to make sure Belle was ok. David appeared with Emma by his side just as the ambulance got there, he pulled Belle up onto her feet as the paramedics went to work. Gold was still breathing but it was very shallow, they got him onto a stretcher and bundled him straight into the waiting ambulance. Belle climbed into the back of the ambulance 

“Emma” she called her best friend “you need to call Neal”

“Already done” Emma confirmed “he’s on his way to the hospital, he’ll meet you there”

Belle nodded and went back to staring at Cams pale face; he had a breathing mask on and a clip on his finger to monitor his pulse. 

“Please don’t leave me” she whispered and clutched his hand, silent tears running down her face. They got to the hospital in record time, Belle didn’t even realise they had been moving the entire time, she had just been staring at Cams face, willing for him to open his eyes. The paramedics threw open the vehicle doors and pulled the stretcher out causing Belle to lose contact with Golds hand. She scrambled out quickly after them and followed to where they were taking him.

“47 year old male, hit by a car” the paramedic shouted to the attending doctor “hasn’t regained consciousness, breathing is stable” 

Belle saw Neal standing at the reception desk looking very angry at the female receptionist who wasn’t helping him at all “Neal!” Belle called out when she spotted him.

“Belle?” Bae pulled her into his arms “what the hell happened?” 

“we were" she paused to stifle a sob “we were crossing the road over to the shop when a car came speeding out of nowhere, Cam pushed me out of the way, but he didn’t have time to get himself out of its way, the car just aimed for him” she sobbed harder “I've only just found him, I can’t lose him now”

“You won’t” Bae vowed and pulled her in for another hug. When her sobs quietened he chanced a question “so you and my dad huh?” he said with a soft smile. She’d forgotten people had only found out about them a few hours prior, after her sham of a non-wedding.

“I love him” she responded.

“Hey I’m not judging” Bae held his hands up in defence “it’s a little weird for me but if you make each other happy then great” 

“Thank you” Belle sniffles again. They sat in silence for a while, both lost in their thoughts when a doctor in surgical scrubs came in to the room.

“I’m looking for the family of Cameron Gold” the man asked.

“I’m Neal Gold, his son” Bae replied “and this is his girlfriend Belle”

“I’ve been working on Mr Gold since they brought him in, he’s very badly injured, he’s got a broken ankle, and a broken wrist, but our biggest concern is the injury to his head, it’s caused some swelling on his brain which we have relieved but we have had to put him in a coma for now to allow the swelling to go down, at the moment we just have to wait and see how it goes” the surgeon finished and waited for any questions.

“Can we see him?” Neal asked. The doctor nodded and showed the pair to a room down the corridor. When they entered Belles legs nearly buckled at the sight of her love looking so broken. 

“Papa?” Neal sounded like a little boy when faced with his father looking so beaten up and Belle could see the tears forming in his eyes. She needed to be strong, so she walked up to him and held his hand, and tried not to let anymore of her tears fall. Cam would be fine, he had to be.


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay, been suffering writers block and had a poorly little boy. anyway enjoy!

Belle entered the hospital with a cup of coffee, the newspaper and some magazines tucked under her arm. It was the fourth day Cam had been in a coma and she was exhausted, she and Neal took it in turns to sit with him. 

She knocked gently on the door so as not to make the younger Gold jump and entered “morning Neal” she smiled, although it didn’t quite reach her eyes.

“Morning” he replied gruffly, obviously having just woken up in the uncomfortable chair.

“How is he?” Belle asked as she walked over to Cam and placed a soft kiss on his forehead.

“The same” Neal replied sadly. He was interrupted from saying more by the doctor entering the room.

“Good morning” he said chipperly but cowered under the unimpressed stares from Neal and Belle. “Well you’ll be happy to know that the swelling has gone down considerably and we are going to try and bring Mr Gold out of the coma today”

Belle’s eyes lit up and she looked at Neal who looked relieved.

“Obviously it’ll be down to him to wake up when he is ready so be prepared to wait” the doctor added. After explaining the procedure he left the room. 

“He’s going to be ok” Belle smiled and collapsed into the nearest chair.

“Yeah” Neal replied distractedly.

“What’s wrong?” Belle asked worriedly “you should be happy”

“I am” Neal replied “but what if something goes wrong, what if the damage to his brain is worse than they think”

“You can’t think like that” Belle got up and placed her hands on his shoulders “your dad is strong, have faith that he’ll be the same infuriating man he always was” she giggled and made Neal smile.

“You’re right” he sighed “I’m going to go home and get showered and changed and be right back, doc said it’ll be a while until anything happens”

“I’ll stay here with him” Belle said and watched as Neal left the room. When she was sure they were alone she sat down and stared longingly at the man she loved. Her heart was pounding at the thought that she might actually be able to see his brown eyes today, and that she may be able to speak to him.

“hey you” she sighed pushing a stray lock of hair out of his eyes “the doctors say you might wake up today, I hope so, I miss you so much Cam” she entwined her hand with his “you’re not allowed to leave me ever again after this Mr Gold, you hear me” 

She kept on talking to him, reading him the paper and some of the magazine articles she had brought with her until the doctor returned with a couple of nurses, the doctor injected something into Cam and ran a few tests and then informed her it would be a matter of waiting. She sent a quick text to Neal to let him know what was happening and he replied that he’d be there soon. She sat and held his hand, silently praying that he’d wake up soon. A couple of hours passed and Neal had returned with Emma, and then they’d gone to the cafeteria to get a drink and Belle was alone again. She was still clutching his hand when she thought she felt something move, she looked up at his face but didn’t see anything happening so thought she was imagining things. But then she felt something again, he was gripping her hand, only gently but he was definitely moving.

“Cam?” she said softly standing up never letting go of his hand “can you hear me?” she asked and stroked the hair off his forehead again. His eyes began to flicker and Belle swore her heart stopped when his eyes opened, she burst into tears “Cam” she sobbed his name.

“Belle” he choked out. His voice was hoarse from not being used and his throat was so dry. 

“Hi” she smiled through her tears. He began to cough and struggle against all the tubes attached to him. Belle panicked and pressed the emergency button next to the bed “Cam calm down you’re fine, you’re in hospital” she tried to calm him. The doctor and nurses came rushing in and Belle had to step back while they saw to Cam. They removed the tubes and gave Cam a breathing mask that he could remove when needed, when they were satisfied he was ok they sat him up and allowed Belle back in the room. She had texted Neal to let him know his dad was awake so she knew she wouldn’t be alone with him for long.

“Hi” Cam said when he saw her hesitantly come back in the room.

Belle burst into tears and ran to him and flung her body on his.

“Ow!” Cam groaned and Belle pulled back panicked.

“Oh god I’m so sorry” Belle rushed out “are you ok?”

“I’m fine” Cam assured her “just a bit sore, you need to be gentle for now” he winked and she giggled through her tears.

“You scared me” she patted him lightly on the chest.

“It’ll take a lot more than that to get rid of me sweetheart” he joked but she burst into tears again “shhh don’t cry, I’m ok” he soothed.

“I thought I’d lost you” she cried “when the car hit you I thought I’d lost you”

“I’m still here Belle” he held her hand. Just as he was about the say more the door opened and Neal and Emma entered the room.

“Thank God you’re awake” Neal exhaled “how you feeling?” 

“Sore, got a massive headache but I’m ok” Gold reached up and tentatively touched his head and found the bandage covering part of his head. He could see his leg was in a cast and so was his left wrist, damn he was lucky to be alive! He noticed that the leg that was broken was the one that he already had to use a cane for. Belle noticed him looking at the leg.

“doctor whale said that with surgery your leg will be good as new, even better than before the accident, the way it’s broken this time will allow them to fix the original problem” she told him.

“No more cane?” he asked hopefully. He would never have told her but he hated feeling like a cripple next to someone as beautiful and young as Belle.

“No more cane” Belle confirmed. 

“I’m so glad you’re ok dad” Bae said.

“Me too” Emma confirmed “you had us worried there for a minute” she smiled. Belle continued to sit holding Cams hand while he spoke with Neal and Emma.

“Did you catch who was driving?” Gold asked. Belles ears pricked up at the question, she’d been so preoccupied she hadn’t even wondered. Although the dread in her stomach already knew the answer. At Emma’s silence Gold answered his own question “it was Will wasn’t it?”

Emma nodded “we got his car on the diners CCTV but unfortunately we’ve been unable to find Will so far, so be careful crossing any streets for now” she tried to joke and Gold did give her a tight smile but he couldn’t laugh. The boy he had raised as his own son had tried to kill him and Belle.

“I can’t believe Will would go this far” Neal sighed. 

“I feel like I failed him” Gold mumbled sadly.

“Don’t you dare think that” Neal reprimanded “you were a brilliant dad to me and Will, whatever’s happened, it doesn’t justify what he’s done”

Gold nodded but stared at his hand that was entwined with Belles “yeah” he said quietly.

Before long Neal and Emma left to go and fetch Henry from Emma’s parents and Belle was left alone with Cam again.

“Neal was right you know” Belle squeezed Golds hand “You are not to blame for what’s happened to Will”

“I had an affair with his girlfriend, I stopped his wedding” Gold muttered looking down at their joined hands.

“His girlfriend wasn’t happy, and she couldn’t help falling in love with you, and that wedding was a complete sham that should never had happened anyway” Belle justified. Gold didn’t reply, instead he just squeezed her hand and then lifted it to his lips to place a soft kiss.

“I want to get out of here” Gold grumbled and Belle had to smile.

“You just woke up after 4 days in a coma, and you were badly injured, I think it’s going to be a while before you’re allowed home” she told him and smiled again when he pouted. 

“Can’t we just say you’re going to look after me at home” Gold asked hopefully “we could get you a little nurse’s outfit” his mind began to drift at the thought of Belle in uniform. A smack to his arm brought him back to the present “ow what was that for?” he whined.

“Keep your perverted thoughts to yourself” she scolded and he laughed. God how she had missed his laugh! 

“I can’t help it when it comes to you” he pulled her hand so moved closer to him “you’re so beautiful”

“I really thought I’d lost you” she whispered and stroked his cheek. She kept needing to touch him to make sure she wasn’t dreaming. 

They stayed cuddled up on Golds hospital bed until it was time for Belle to go. She still needed to face the music with her father who she had been dodging since her non-wedding; she knew he was going to be mad about her unexpected relationship.

“I’ll be back to see you tomorrow” Belle kissed Gold deeply, she giggled when he tried to pull her onto the bed with him and deepen the kiss further “you need to rest Mr Gold” she ordered and patted his chest.

“I need you” he pouted.

“You’ve got me forever” she reminded him and kissed him again before turning and heading out of the door. The air was warm outside as the first stirrings of spring began in Storybrooke. Belle smiled as she began the short journey back to her home. People stared at her as she walked up Main Street, she hated to be the centre of gossip but after everything that had happened she couldn’t really be surprised by the reaction. 

She saw Emma as she got closer to her apartment and the blonde gave her a wave as she entered the Sheriff’s station across the street. Belle stopped and looked around and saw a few people stood gawking at her. She wanted to scream at them to get a life but instead she smiled sweetly at them and gave a tiny wave, she almost laughed when they all began to scurry off in different directions, embarrassed at being caught gossiping. Belle shook her head and ascended the steps to her home, she hadn’t spent much time there in the last few days between visiting Cameron at the hospital and having to do a couple of shifts at the library (Regina refused her a few days off to deal with Cameron’s accident) and also trying to make sure Neal was ok so she hadn’t been home. 

She walked into her bed room and sat down on the bed, she was exhausted but also felt so much lighter with the knowledge that he was awake and he was going to be fine. They would deal with the gossiping together when he was home but until then he needed to rest, she wouldn’t burden him with their nosey neighbours.

She sighed as she looked at the clock and realised she had to go visit her father. He had been on at her for days to go see him after the shock announcement at the wedding that she was in love with Mr Gold. He was mad and confused and he wanted an explanation. Belle was nervous as she quickly for changed and headed back out and walked up the street to her father’s shop. 

“Papa” Belle called out as she entered the shop. She breathed in the sweet smell of the flowers that surrounded her. The smell always reminded her of her mother and it calmed her.

Moe French appeared from out the back of the store a few seconds later. He had made a full recovery from his minor heart attack and he was once again a large looming presence over Belle, and once again Belle felt nervous. 

“So you finally grace me with your presence” he griped.

“I’m sorry papa” Belle cowered under his furious gaze “but I’ve been spending all my time at the hospital” 

“With that man?” Moe couldn’t even bring himself to say his name.

“With Cameron yes” Belle bristled at the father’s tone “he’s getting better thanks for asking. He finally woke up today”

“Pity” Moe mumbled under his breath but Belle heard him.

“How dare you!” Belle raged “you’re talking about the man I love, and I know you don’t approve but it’s my life”

“But he’s a monster Belle” Moe argued.

“Says the man who just wished a man dead” she spat back “I only came here to explain about the wedding and what really happened but you don’t deserve to know right now”

“You’re making a mistake by being with him” He ignored her argument and continued to try and get her to see sense.

“so it’s a mistake to be with someone who makes me happy, someone who loves me and treats me like a princess” Belle smiled slightly as she recalled the moments spent with Cameron “if that’s what making a mistake is then I’ll be glad to be making mistakes for the rest of my life” and with that she began to storm out, her hand paused on the door handle as she recalled a memory “mother told me once that her parents didn’t like you, that they thought you were wrong for her, but she went against their wishes and she had a happy life” Moe stared at her open-mouthed “maybe you should think about that papa” and this time she did pull the for handle and stepped out onto the sidewalk.

Tears threatened to spill as she furiously walked back towards her apartment, she couldn’t believe her father, and the one man who was supposed to support her was just as bad as the rest of the residents of Storybrooke.

She saw Emma again on her way back and had to quickly wipe her eyes before she saw her tears.

“What’s wrong?” Emma wasn’t fooled.

“Nothing, just an argument with my father” Belle tried to smile but Emma could tell it was forced.

“Ok, I thought something had happened to Gold then” Emma heaved a sigh of relief.

“No he’s fine, doesn’t want to be stuck in hospital so he’s being a nightmare but he’s on the mend” Belle actually did smile this time. Thoughts of Cameron could always make her smile.

“I just wanted to let you know there’s been a sighting of Will” Emma informed her “Dad’s gone to check it out now”

“Where is he?” Belle felt the panic rising up.

“Look don’t panic but he was spotted near the hospital” Emma said gently.

“But Cameron….” Belle couldn’t finish her sentence.

“Will be fine” Emma finished it for her “I've got two deputies standing guard on the ward, Will won’t get anywhere near Gold” she assured.

Meanwhile over the other side of town Gold sat in his hospital bed bored out of his mind, he had texted Belle and Bae had been to visit him again but now he was alone and the only thinking he could do was think about Will. The boy he had raised from a baby and had loved as if he was his own had tried to kill him. Had knocked him down and left him for dead like he was nothing, without even looking back.

Gold startled when his hospital room door swung open suddenly and the air left his lungs when he saw who was stood there.

“Come to finish the job?” Gold tried to remain calm as his hand slowly reached for the call button at the side of his bed.

“Don’t you dare press that button” Will ordered and it was only then Gold noticed the scared look in his eyes. He looked like the scared little boy Gold had comforted all those times when he was little and had nightmares. He pulled his hand back and rested it on his lap as he waited for Will to talk.

“There are police everywhere” Will mumbled as he snuck a glance through the blinds.

“Well someone did try to kill me” Cameron replied a little sarcastically.

Will remained quiet for a moment and Cameron was about to ask why he was there before Will spoke “it wasn’t me”

“What wasn’t you?” Gold asked.

“It wasn’t me that ran you over” Will turned and faced his father “I might be angry and confused right now but I don’t want you dead”

“It was your car William” Gold pointed out. Will blanched at the use of his full name.

“I know, but please dad you have to believe I wasn’t driving” Will pleaded, tears began to pool in the young man’s eyes. Cameron studied his son, he looked broken and so much like the little boy he had raised that he couldn’t help but ponder whether Will was telling the truth or just trying to save his own skin.

“So if it wasn’t you then who was it?” Gold decided to give him the benefit of the doubt for a moment.

“The mayors sister” Will answered “Zelena I think her name is”

“Zelena” Gold growled the witches name “of course she's involved”

“she’s crazy” Will said “she kept telling me you were having an affair with Belle but I wouldn’t believe her, she kept pushing and pushing and then one day she sent me to the shop and well you know what happened then”

Gold looked down at his hands and nodded, that had not been his finest moment.

“I admit I went a little crazy when I found you pair together but everything, I would never have gone to the sheriff with that story, I was just mad. But then Zelena found me that night and we got drunk and…….” Will trailed off.

“You slept with her” Gold surmised. Will nodded.

“She got in my head, persuaded me that you needed to be punished at that I needed to keep you and Belle apart, the whole wedding, and the blackmail, it was all planned by her. I was so screwed up after finding out about you not being my real dad that nothing seemed to matter anymore” he wiped away a few tears that had fallen and sat on the chair next to his fathers bed and grasped the elders Golds hand “please Papa, you have to believe me” 

Gold studied their clasped hands, and watched as more tears fell from his sons eyes. He decided on a course of action and thought of the one person he could trust “we need to call Emma”


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry again for the delay. im struggling with the story at the moment. enjoy!

Emma stormed through the hospital with Belle firmly on her tail; she had received a call from Gold not long ago and she was now racing to get to his room. She was going to kill her deputies when she got a hold of them, they had been ordered to guard Gold and somehow they had both managed to miss Will getting into the hospital and into Golds room.

“What if he’s hurt him?” Belle called ou to Emma’s back.

“I can only assume he’s ok as he was able to call me but we need to be quick” Emma shouted back and Belle moved a bit quicker, her shorter legs struggling to keep up with Emma’s long ones.

They made it to Golds room and Emma was even more riled to find his room unmanned, making a mental note to inform her father when she was done here. She opened the door with her hand firmly planted on her gun in the holster in case she was walking into a crime scene.

“Miss Swan, do come in” Gold gestured to his daughter in law; he was surprised to see Belle enter behind the blonde “Belle? What are you doing here?”

“She was with me when you called, you try stopping her” Emma answered.

Belle slipped passed Emma and immediately went to Golds side as she eyed Will who was stood in the corner.

“Are you Ok?” Belle asked Cameron.

“Yes sweetheart I’m fine, Will here has some things he needs to tell Emma” Cameron looked to Will and encouraged him to start talking. He recounted everything he had said to his father, starting with the car accident in which he knocked down Mr Clarke and ending with Zelena being the one to run down Gold.

“Wow that’s quite a tale” Emma blew out a breath “But there is that little thing called evidence I need Will” 

“I have the texts that Zelena sent me, I can’t prove that she ran down dad but they prove she’s crazy” Will handed Emma his phone and she proceeded to scroll through the messages.

“Wow” was all Emma could thing to say in that moment “you weren’t exaggerating were you?” 

“It gives you reason to at least question her right?” Will asked hopefully.

“Yes” Emma nodded “But I still need you to come to the station Will, you’re still a suspect I’m afraid” 

“Dad?” Will looked to Gold, begging for help.

“Just go with Emma son” Cameron urged “answer all the questions they ask truthfully and you’ll be fine”

Will hesitated but eventually nodded and walked out of the hospital room with Emma at his side. She glared at the two deputies who were now stood outside Golds room, they gulped as they realised the trouble they were going to be in. 

Cameron leant his head back on his pillow and sighed.

“Are you Ok?” Belle asked as she sat down on the bed next to him.

“I’m fine sweetheart” Cameron smiled but Belle knew him well enough to know it was forced.

“Do you believe him?” She had to ask.

“I think I do yes” he replied “you didn’t see him when he got here Belle, he looked so scared about what could happen to him, he was like that ten year old boy again who thought he was going to be in serious trouble when he broke an antique clock playing football in the house” 

“Well hopefully Emma can find some evidence to support him” Belle dared to hope.

“Yeah” Gold yawned and Belle realised he hadn’t got any rest since he woke up.

“I should leave you to sleep” Belle went to stand up off the bed but Gold caught her arm.

“Could you....” he hesitated, hating to feel weak in front of her but he was a little afraid of anymore unwelcome visitors “could you stay a while?”

Belle smiled “of course” 

She lay back down beside him and wrapped her arms around him; his head rested on her chest as she absentmindedly stroked her fingers through his hair. Before long she heard his breathing evening out so she knew he had fallen asleep. She kissed the top of his head and whispered ‘I love you’ before drifting off into slumber herself.

A couple of hours later Belle awoke with a start, she had been having a nightmare about the accident again, every time the car slammed into Cameron’s body she’d wake up, covered in sweat and shaking. She looked around the now dark room and waited a moment for her eyes to adjust, it was then she noticed she was alone in the bed.

“Cameron?” she called into the darkness. She could see a sliver of light coming from under the bathroom door so assumed that was where he had gone. The door opened and she was momentarily blinded by the light before he pulled the switch.

“Hi sweetheart” Cameron smiled but his face fell when he saw her face in the moonlight “what’s wrong?” 

“I woke up and you were gone” she whispered.

He limped back to the side of the bed and lifted himself back onto the mattress “come here” he lifted his arm that wasn’t bandaged and she shuffled up close to him “I’m sorry, I didn’t want to wake you so I called for a nurse to help me to the bathroom”

“I keep having nightmares about the car hitting you” Belle admitted.

“oh Belle, I wish I could take those thoughts away, but look on the bright side, I’m still here and we're still together, you’re stuck with me” Cameron joked.

Belle chuckled softly and moved to look into his eyes “I can’t think of a better place to be stuck” 

Cameron smiled and held her tighter, “me neither my love”

At the sheriff’s station Will sat nervously in an interview room waiting for Emma to fetch her father. He drummed his fingers nervously on the table in front of him and he almost jumped out of his chair when the door opened and David strolled in followed by Emma 

“So then Will, Emma tells me you’ve told her quite the fairy tale” David said bluntly as he took a seat opposite Will.

“It’s not a fairy tale” Will grumbled “I didn’t try to kill my father.... I couldn’t” 

“But you expect me to believe Zelena..... The mayor’s sister....... could do that” David scoffed. Emma watched the scene from the back of the room; she chewed nervously on her thumb nail watching to see if she could tell if Will was lying. Neal always grumbled that she had some sort of super power that she always knew when someone was lying.

“She did try to kill him” Will declared “she has some crazy obsession with him, ask dad” 

“I will be talking to your father in due course but he has only just woke up from a coma” David reminded Will.

“Please you have to believe me” Will was almost sobbing and Emma stepped forward and placed her hand on her dad’s shoulder. He looked up at his daughter.

“I think he’s telling the truth” Emma announced. Will looked up hopefully at his sister in law, but David was looking at her sceptically.

“You believe me?” Will asked.

“I think so” Emma told him “you better not make me regret this” 

Will shook his head “I won’t”

“How about you take the lead on this one then?” David decided “you have a better relationship with Regina anyway and if we're about to arrest her sister it’ll probably be better if it’s you”

Emma nodded a little unsure but smiled as David left the room and she was left alone with Will “I need to know everything”

Will recounted everything, not leaving out any details as Emma took notes.

“The problem we have Will is that we have no evidence, you had motive after discovering your dad’s affair with Belle, what motive does Zelena have?” 

“she’s obsessed with dad” Will reiterated his theory, he paused as he thought about what he could do “what if I talk to her but you put one of those sure thingy’s on me”

“You want to get a confession out of her?” Emma asked “what makes you think she’ll admit it to you?”

“I don’t know, I just don’t know what else to do” Will sighed “she won’t admit it to you that’s for sure” 

Emma thought over their options, Will was right of course, she wouldn’t admit anything “ok fine, if you think you can get a confession then we will do what you said”

Will nodded happily, he breathed a sigh of relief that Emma had agreed, now he just had to figure out what he could say to make her confess.

It was a couple of hours later before Will walked out of the station, he scratched at his chest where he now had a recording device attached to his skin. He grumbled as the tape pulled on his chest hair, it didn’t look this painful in the movies!

A couple of people passed him in the street and he could hear the sniggers coming from them, the memory of his non wedding was still fresh in everyone’s minds. He pulled out his cell phone as he headed down the street toward his house, he needed to change his clothes and have a shower before he met with Zelena. That’s if he can get her to meet him anyway. The phone rang a few times and Will was about to hang up when he heard her voice.

“Hello sweetie” Zelena purred and Will cringed.

“Hello” Will replied as calmly as he could.

“What do I owe the pleasure?” she asked “I thought you be locked up by now”

“Yeah well Emma’s a great sister in law but not a good cop” he sniggered trying to get Zelena to believe him.

“That is so true” Zelena giggled and Will thought it might be easier than he thought to get her to admit what she did.

“Can we meet?” he asked abruptly and cringed at his desperate tone. He needed to calm down; he couldn’t give her any reason to suspect he was working for the police.

“Why?” Zelena questioned.

“Because you’ve been the only one who has understood me through all this and helped me” Will turned on the charm he knew he inherited from his father. The thought actually made him smile as for the first time in a while he had thought of Cameron as his dad again and not some faceless stranger.

“Well since you put it that way” she purred “where do you want me?” 

Will cringed at her flirtatious tone and the subtle innuendo “my house? Dad obviously isn’t there so we can be alone” 

He knew they needed somewhere private, he couldn’t suggest the bar or Granny’s as it was too crowded and she would never confess with an audience. There was also the slight fact that a lot of the town thought he was to blame for mowing down Cameron and they would probably call the police on him

“Can’t wait to be alone with me then?” she chuckled “ok I’ll be there soon”

“Great” Will replied as eager as he could.

Will walked up the steps to his house and opened the front door. The place seemed unfamiliar without his father there, Will hated that it had taken his father nearly dying to finally get over himself and understand why Cameron had never told him the truth. Cameron had raised him when he didn’t have to; it took an amazing man to do that and now Will felt awful for the way he hated treated Cameron.

After Will had showered and changed and downed a couple of tumblers of his dad’s scotch he sat and waited for Zelena. He played how he was going to start the conversation with her and hoped that she dug her own grave eventually. She wasn’t that smart, and Will wasn’t exactly a Brainiac but he could take Zelena on.

He was so lost in thoughts that he almost spilt his drink when the doorbell rang, he took a deep breath and plastered on his most charming smile and headed to open the door. 

“Hello gorgeous” Zelena breathed as she leant against the door jamb trying to look seductive. But in her too tight dress and too much makeup Will could only think she looked trashy. 

“Hello beautiful” Will smiled and gestured for her to come in. While she was distracted entering the house and looking around he looked outside and saw Emma sat in an car a little way up the road, he gave a discreet thumbs up and then shut the door and turned to Zelena who was staring at a photo hung on the wall of his father in his police uniform in his younger days.

“He’s so handsome in uniform” She stroked her hand down the picture and Will cringed, how could he have missed have psychotic and obsessed she was.

“Yeah well now he’s just old” Will sniped; he needed to keep up the pretence that he hated his father.

“Well he can't be that old if you lost your girl to him” Zelena sneered back.

“He’s probably blackmailing her, some deal that she got herself into and now she’s stuck with him forever” he muttered.

“That sounds like Gold” she giggled with a dreamy sigh “so what can I do for you?”

“I just thought you would want to talk after your wedding plan fell through, I thought maybe you’d come up with a new plan?” Will hoped he sounded serious enough for her to believe he was still working with her to split up Belle and his father.

“You still want that little bookworm after she is it humiliated you?” Zelena asked indignantly.

“I want to make them pay for humiliating me” he shot back.

“Wasn’t getting run over payment enough” she asked with a grin and Wills heart sped up at the fact that his plan seemed to be going in the right direction.

“He survived and they’re still together” he pointed out “whoever ran him over didn’t do a very good job” 

“Everyone’s saying it was you” she walked closer to Will.

“Yeah well it wasn’t me, I wish it had been but someone thought of it first and used my car to do it, probably to try and frame me” he was trying very hard not to accuse her and get her to admit it on her own.

“They sound very clever” she smirked and Will could only wish Emma was watching but unfortunately she was just listening.

“not clever enough” Will tried to hide his own smirk at her unimpressed stare “Emma text me just before you got here to tell me they found my car, it wasn’t very well hidden and they’re dusting for prints as we speak, whoever was driving will be caught soon”

“Doubtful as I wiped the car clean” Zelena blurted out and then recoiled as she realised her own words “I mean..... I mean, they probably wiped the car clean” 

“I knew it was you” Will mentally cheered that his plan had worked “you witch, you tried to frame me!”

“Prove it, it’s my word against yours” Zelena grinned “and who are they going to believe, the mayors sister with no motive or the victims son with one hell of a motive” she moved toward the door and looked back to smirk at Will “goodbye William”

She pulled the door open and stepped back in shock when she was faced with Emma and two deputies “Zelena Mills, you are under arrest for the attempted murder of Cameron Gold....” Emma read Zelena her right and cuffed her hands together behind her back while all the while the red head was stunned into silence. It was only when she was starting to be lead away that she realised what had happened; she wrenched herself round to see Will stood in the doorway watching her.

“You son of a bitch” she screeched “You tricked me”

“And you fell for it hook, line and sinker” Will smiled gleefully and waved at Zelena after she had been bundled into a waiting squad car.

“I’ll still need to get a statement from you later” Emma interrupted his thoughts “good job Will, I’ll let your dad know what’s happened”

“Do you mind if I tell him?” Will asked.

Emma shook her head with a smile, glad that her family seemed to be getting back on track. Now she just needed to make sure Zelena didn’t worm her way out of trouble, and she also had the unnerving task of telling the mayor.


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We've reached the last chapter! I will be posting an epilogue so this isn't goodbye just yet! Enjoy!

“Cameron” Belle moaned as her lovers lips trailed up her throat, they were laid on Cameron's hospital bed wrapped in each other’s arms. Gold had directed the hospital staff not to disturb him for a couple of hours. He needed to be alone with Belle for a while, since the sham wedding and his trip to the sheriff's department and then the accident he hadn’t really had much time to talk to her about where they go from here.

“I love you” Cameron whispers against her skin. Belle pulled back to look him in the eyes and stroked his cheek.

“I love you too” she leant forward and kissed him deeply.

“We should really talk” Gold tried to stop what they were doing but he just couldn’t tear himself away.

“We really should” she mumbled against his lips but she also couldn’t stop. Gold moved forward until Belle was laid beneath him, he kissed down her neck as his hands wandered down her body.

“I’m so glad you wear skirts” he breathed as his hand ghosted up the inside of her thigh. Belle moaned as his fingers came into contact with her soaked panties “you’re so wet” 

“Stop teasing me” Belle grumbled.

Gold smiled against her skin as he pulled the material to the side about to put his fingers where she was aching for him.

“Hey dad guess what?!” Will strode in abruptly “Woah!” 

The amorous pair jumped apart quickly.

“Will?” Gold didn’t know what else to say.

“I’m sorry” Will stood facing the wall “I should’ve knocked or something”

“No we’re sorry” Belle stuttered, her cheeks were a bright pink “we got a bit carried away”

“No no it’s my fault” Will was still talking to the wall and Gold had had enough.

“Alright stop, we're all sorry. Now Will can you look at me please and not the wall” Gold ordered his son. Will turned but remained looking at the floor.

“Belle sweetheart can you give us a minute?” Gold asked 

“Yes of course, I’ll go get a coffee” she kissed Cameron gently and slipped off the bed “do you want one Will?” 

“Yes please” Will mumbled with a slight nod of his head.

Cameron watched Belle go and then turned back to Will.

“I really am sorry dad” Will finally looked up at Cameron.

“We shouldn’t have been getting so carried away” Gold looked down sheepishly “it can’t exactly be easy for you to see Belle with me”

“It’s strange I’ll admit that” Will exhaled “but I’ll get used to it” he paused in thought “she looks happy with you, she never looked at me that way” 

“But still, we will not flaunt things in front of you” the elder Gold said adamantly 

“Thanks but you don’t have to” Will said “maybe just put a sock on the door knob or something” he joked and Gold chuckled. 

“What did you come barging in here to say anyway?” Cameron suddenly remembered.

“oh yeah I nearly forgot” Will started bouncing on the balls of his feet, Gold couldn’t help the smile that stretched across his face as he watched his youngest get excited about something “Emma arrested Zelena” he blurted out.

Gold was shocked at the development “that was quick”

“I helped” Will said proudly “I got her talking and Emma was listening and I got her to admit that she ran you over” 

“Wow” Gold couldn’t quite believe what Will and Emma had achieved in such a short amount of time “thank you son”

“After everything I’ve done it’s the least I could do” Will said “I’m so sorry for everything papa”

“I know you are” Cameron smiled “I’m sorry too, I should’ve told you about your real father, I think I was being selfish, I wasn’t ready to not be your father anymore”

“You’ll always be my dad” Will interrupted “I was confused and lost for a while there but whether or not you’re my biological dad doesn’t change anything, that man and my mother left me, they don’t care about me, you raised me even knowing that I wasn’t yours, you’re the best papa a boy could’ve had”

Cameron swiped at his eyes to stop the tears that threatened to fall “I’ll always be here for you, whether you decide to see Milah and Killian or not”

“I don’t think that’ll ever happen but thank you” Will moved forward to sit on the edge of Cameron’s bed “so you and Belle are going to be together then?”

“As long as that's ok with you?” Gold wasn’t sure what he would do if Will said he wasn’t.

“like I said, it’s a little weird but I’ll get used to it, as long as she’s not going to be my step mother for a very long time yet we should be good” Will joked and missed the slightly crestfallen look on his dad’s face. He hadn’t really thought much about proposing to Belle but to know that Will wouldn’t be happy if that happened any time soon was a little bit disappointing. He was saved from further thought by a soft knock on the door.

“Is it safe to come in?” Belle popped her head around the door and Cameron smiled and nodded. She didn’t miss the slight frown on Cams face but decided to ask him later what was wrong. She handed Will his coffee and then proceeded to move around the bed to sit next to Cameron. She clasped his hand in hers and he smiled at her and squeezed his hand tightly around hers. It was amazing how just a simple touch from Belle couple make him feel instantly better.

“I’ll leave you both to it” Will got up and brushed down his jeans “when do you think they’ll be letting you home?” 

“Why are you planning a house party while I’m gone?” Gold joked “I’m not sure, Doctor Whale wants to make sure the swelling has gone down in my brain and then they’ve got to sort out physio for my leg so will probably be a few more days yet”

“Ok papa” Will nodded “I’ll try not to burn the place down” he laughed and headed out of the room. Gold watched him go and Belle remained silent until he brought his attention back to her.

“Are you ok?” she asked. 

“I’m fine sweetheart” Cameron smiled.

“You looked a little upset when I came back in” she probed.

“It was nothing, just me being a silly old man” he replied and brought her hand up to his mouth to place a soft kiss.

“You are not old” Belle poked his side making him jump.

“You are going to pay for that” he growled and yanked her up to kiss her passionately “now where were we before we were so rudely interrupted” he breathed against her lips.

“Wait!” she pushed at his shoulders and yanked herself away from him, she walked towards the door.

“What are you..?” he stopped as she clicked the lock on the door “oh!” he grinned.

She sauntered back to him with a sway of her hips and climbed on to the bed with him “much better” she smirked. He mirrored her expression and brought his mouth back to hers.

“Little minx” he chuckled as his hands found their way back down her body. Yes Belle could always make him feel better!

Over on the other side of town Emma sat in her yellow Beetle staring up the path to the mayor’s mansion. 

“You can’t sit out here forever” Neal told her. He had sensed how nervous Emma had been about having to tell Regina about Zelena’s arrest and so had offered to come along for support.

“I know” Emma cried “she's going to kill me”

“Just make sure she doesn’t offer you an apple” he laughed and Emma looked at him confused “Henry thinks she’s the evil queen remember, the queen that poisoned Snow White with an apple”

“You and Henry read far too many fairy tales” Emma grumbled with a smile. 

“Yeah but he loves them” Neal smiled “and now he has a new grandma that’s a librarian, he’ll be reading more than ever” 

“Don’t let Belle hear you call her Grandma” Emma laughed “thank you for coming with me” she stroked Neal’s cheek tenderly. One minute she was an absolute nervous wreck and then a few words from him she was relaxed.

“You are very welcome” Neal kissed her palm “do you want me to come with you?”

“No it’s fine” Emma sighed “this is my job, I need to do this by myself”

“Ok well I’ll be right here when you’re done” Neal told her.

“Thank you” she leaned across and kissed her fiancé and then got out of the car. She stood and looked up at the house and took a deep breath and squared her shoulders before striding up the path. Her footsteps faltered as she ascended the steps and was faced with the very large white door.

She reached up and rang the doorbell and tapped her foot nervously as she waited for someone to answer the door. Regina soon appeared.

“Miss Swan, what can I do for you?” the mayor asked.

“Actually Mayor Mills we need to talk” Emma swallowed nervously “can I come in?” 

Regina rolled her eyes and turned to walk back into the house; Emma turned to glance back at her car and saw Neal give her double thumbs up. She rolled her eyes at her fiancé and then followed behind Regina.

“So come on I haven’t got all day” Regina scowled.

“There’s been a development in the attempted murder of Gold” Emma said quickly. Regina stood fixing her make-up in the mirror, not really caring about the case.

“And this concerns me how?” she asked.

“Because” Emma stuttered “because we’ve arrested your sister for the crime”

“What?!” Regina spun around with her eye liner still in mid-air.

“we had reason to believe that Zelena was involved and so we got her to admit on tape that she was behind the wheel when Gold was ran down” Emma informed the mayor, she managed to stay calm and not be intimidated.

“This is ridiculous” Regina scoffed “I want my sister released now Miss Swan, if you know what is good for you then you will do as I say”

“I can’t do that Mayor Mills” Emma remained strong “your sister admitted to attempted murder, that cannot just be ignored, if you have a problem with that then I suggest you take it up with the sheriff”

Emma turned and stormed toward the front door before Regina could threaten or scream another word. She knew her father wouldn’t let Zelena out no matter what Regina threatened. That’s why he was sheriff!

Emma walked down the steps and got into her car.

“You’re still in one piece?” he sounded amazed.

“Yeah” Emma laughed “I’m surprised too” 

They laughed as Emma put the car in drive and they headed down the street toward Henry’s school.

“Let’s get Henry and take him to see dad” Neal said “the kid’s been bugging me since he woke up from his coma” 

Gold lay on his bed with Belle curled up against his side, they’d spent some time getting reacquainted with each other and Belle had fell asleep not long after. Cameron knee she hadn’t slept much while he had been in his coma so he let her rest. He couldn’t switch off though; he'd slept for four days so he was wide awake now. He stroked his hand up and down her arm absentmindedly while thinking about Wills words earlier. He knew it was too soon now to ask Belle to marry him and before Will had mentioned it he hadn’t even thought about it but now it was in his head he couldn’t shake the thoughts.

He loved her, that was all that mattered, and she loved him. But would Will be ok with it, despite what he said, Gold didn’t know.

Belle stirred next to him and blinked open her eyes, she looked up at him from her place on his chest.

“Hi” she yawned.

“Hello beautiful” he smiled down at her. She sat up slightly and placed a kiss on his cheek

“How long was I out?” she asked.

Gold glanced up at the clock “about two hours”

“Oh I’m sorry” she sat up quickly “you should’ve woke me”

“You looked so peaceful though” he pouted.

Just as Belle was going to say more the door opened with a slam.

“Grandpa!” Henry beamed and ran toward the bed; he bumped into the side of it knocking Golds bandaged leg.

“Ah!” he grimaced.

“Henry be careful” Neal scolded his son “I’m so sorry papa, he was excited and got away from us” 

“No worries” Gold gave a pained smile as his leg throbbed “I’m fine”

“Sorry grandpa” Henry muttered. Gold could see tears pooling in his grandsons eyes.

“don’t worry Henry I’m fine” Cameron soothed and held out his arm for Henry to come and give him a hug “just be a bit gentle for now until I’m better ok?” 

“How are you feeling?” Neal asked as he took the chair next to the bed. Belle slipped off the bed and stepped away to give father and son a moment alone. She joined Emma who was having a quiet word with her son.

“Don’t you run off like that again do you hear me?” Emma quietly scolded her boy.

“Sorry mom” Henry mumbled with his eyes downcast.

“Go and see grandpa and your dad” she ordered and stood when Henry walked away “hey Belle”

“Hey” Belle replied.

“Don’t take this the wrong way but you look like hell” Emma pointed out.

“Gee thanks” Belle griped but followed it with a chuckle “it’s been a tough few days”

“Yeah it has” Emma agreed “imagine my surprise when I found out my best friend was in love with my future father in law”

Belle went wide eyed at Emma’s statement; she’d completely forgotten Emma didn’t know like Ruby had “oh god Emma I’m so sorry”

Emma waved her away “it’s fine, I mean it’s a little weird, you could be my mother in law someday, but if you’re happy then I’m happy”

“Thank you Emma” Belle turned and hugged her best friend. Something she knew Emma hated but the moment called for it.

Gold sat talking to Neal with Henry tucked against his side playing a handheld computer game, he felt contented for the first time in a long time as he listened to Neal’s tales about Henry and out of the corner of his eye he could see the woman he loved laughing and joking with his future daughter in law. The only person missing from the happy moment was Will, but Cameron was still happy in the knowledge that his youngest no longer hated him and that they were working towards things being good again between them.

Cameron Gold could quite safely say that he had never felt this happy!


	18. Epilogue

1 year later

“Belle come on we're going to be late” Ruby pounded on the bathroom door.

“I’ll be out in a minute” Belle called back.

“Hurry up” Ruby shouted back and then walked away.

Belle grumbled under her breath but didn’t make any effort to move; she leant on the sink and stared down at the white stick currently resting on the edge of the porcelain. She looked in the mirror and studied her appearance. Her hair was piled high on her head, her make-up perfect and her dress was pristine but there was a glow that wasn’t normally there.

She glanced at the clock on her phone and saw that it was time to check the test. She knew she should’ve waited until later but she was impatient, a trait that Cameron thought adorable and frustrating at the same time.

Cameron.

The love of her life, the man she wanted to spend the rest of her life with and now – as she glanced down at the white stick – the father of her baby. 

“Oh my god!” Belle whispered as she placed a tentative hand over her stomach.

“Belle! Come on!” this time it was Granny Lucas banging on the door.

“Coming” Belle answered and scooped up the test and shoved it into her clutch bag. She exited the bathroom to find Ruby and Granny waiting for her.

“What were you doing in there?” Ruby tapped her foot.

“Nothing” Belle replied and ducked passed the two women. Belle walked back into the living area of the suite they were occupying and stood stunned when she saw Emma.

“You look beautiful” Belle breathed at her best friend. Tears pooled in her eyes as she took in the sight of her best friend.

“Don’t” Emma warned “you’ll make me cry and then I’ll have to redo my makeup”. The normally hard as nails Emma Swan was a nervous and emotional wreck. Today was finally the day she was marrying her best friend and the father of her son, Neal.

“I’m sorry” Belle gave a watery smile “are you ready to get married?” 

Emma took a nervous breath and nodded “why am I so nervous?” she laughed.

Belle just laughed in response just as Ruby and her grandmother joined them. The three women stood and had pictures taken for a few minutes until the wedding coordinator came to fetch them.

“Let’s get this show on the road” Ruby beamed and Belle smiled. David stood outside the suite waiting for his daughter and Belle almost began to cry again when he saw the look of awe in his eyes when he saw his only daughter in her wedding dress.

“You’re very emotional today” Ruby whispered to Belle. The smaller brunette just nodded and looked down at her hand that was again resting on her belly “anyone would think you were getting married..... Either that or you’re pregnant” she laughed and then saw the wide eyes of her best friend “oh my god!”

“Ruby keep it down” Belle panicked and looked around, thankfully no one heard Ruby’s outburst.

“You’re pregnant?” Ruby asked quietly.

“I think so” Belle beamed “I’ve done a test and it was positive”

“What did Gold say?” Ruby wondered.

“He doesn’t know yet” Belle replied “he’s been so busy with the wedding and with physio that I didn’t want to burden him until I was sure, plus he's been stressed out with Zelena’s trial”

Regina had kept pushing back the trial date so she could try and get her sister off but in the end the judge had found Zelena guilty and sentenced her to ten years for attempted murder.

“That crazy witch got what she deserved. So when are you going to tell him?” Ruby wanted to know before she accidently let it slip. She was so excited to be Auntie.

“After the wedding” Belle decided “If I can keep it in that long” she laughed

“I’m so happy for you Belles” Ruby beamed and linked her arm through the smaller brunettes “now let’s go get Emma married”

Belle laughed and strode along next to Ruby towards the room of the hotel that the ceremony was taking place in. They hadn’t wanted a big church wedding, neither Neal nor Emma was religious and the fact that they already had a child they decided a wedding in a hotel and the reception in the same place was a good idea.

The three girls, David and Granny made it to the ceremony just in time, everyone was gathered and the music was starting.

“This is it” Emma declared nervously

Belle and Ruby walked down the aisle ahead and Belle saw Cameron stood at the front with both of his son's. Neal was fidgeting nervously and Will – the best man – was whispering in his brothers ear. Cameron looked down the aisle and smiled – that breath-taking smile she loved – at her as she walked towards the front.

She felt butterflies when he looked at her the way he was right now, even after a year of being together she still felt giddy around him. They had had a few ups and downs over the twelve months but they had always stayed strong and in love. Cameron had recently made the leap and asked her to move in to his house, Will had moved out a few weeks prior to live with his new girlfriend, Ana. Marriage had been discussed and Cameron had finally admitted about what Will had said so they had agreed to hold off on marriage, they loved each other and they were moving in together, a piece of paper didn’t matter at the moment.

She made it to the front and stood across from Neal, Will and Cameron and winked at her love before turning to watch Emma and her father walk down the aisle. Cameron wanted to watch his new daughter in law but he couldn’t tear his eyes away from Belle. She looked breathtakingly beautiful in her royal blue gown, he felt like the luckiest man in the world.

Emma made it to the front and Gold finally took his eyes off Belle to watch the ceremony, he smiled when he saw the tears in Neal’s eyes. He was so happy that this day had finally arrived for his son and Emma, they had made it through all the tough times, including an unplanned pregnancy, and had always remained strong. And Henry was growing into a fine young man.

A couple of hours later the reception was in full swing and Gold finally had Belle in his arms.

“I missed you last night” Belle held him close. The girls had stayed at the hotel the night before the wedding as a kind of last night of freedom for Emma while Neal and Will had stayed at the house with Cameron.

“I missed you too” Cameron breathed “I hated waking up without you this morning”

“Now I’m all moved in you’ll never have to wake up alone again” Belle smiled.

“Sounds perfect” Gold grinned and spun Belle around. She needed to tell him the news; she was going to burst soon.

“Can we go somewhere and talk?” she asked.

“Sure” Gold nodded “Is something wrong?” he asked worriedly as he lead her out onto the patio. They took a seat on a secluded bench.

“Everything’s fine” Belle said “well I think it is and I hope that you do too because I’m happy and now I’m scared that you’re not going to be and-

“Belle” Gold took her hands to stop her rambling “what’s happened?”

She looked deep into his eyes and took a deep breath “I’m pregnant”

Gold stayed silent, he just stared at Belle, and he stayed quiet so long that Belle thought he wasn’t happy. Just as she was about to say something he spoke

“You’re sure?” he asked quietly.

“Well I need to make a doctor’s appointment but the test I took was positive” Belle squeaked when Cameron’s lips crashed against hers in a bruising kiss “you’re not mad then?” she breathed against his lips.

He pulled back with a beaming smile “why would I be mad?” 

“I don’t know” Belle shrugged “I know a baby isn’t what we had planned”

“It’s unexpected that’s for sure” Cameron chuckled “but I couldn’t be happier sweetheart” 

Belle lurched forward and claimed his lips again “I love you so much”

“I love you too” Gold wrapped his arms around her and continued to kiss her “you have no idea how much I want you right now” 

The bench they were sat on was secluded but anyone could still walk passed at any moment.

“Do you think anyone will notice if we slip away for a while?” Belle whispered.

Gold stood abruptly and grabbed Belles hand to pull her up to join him, he kissed her hard “come with me” he strode back into the hotel but kept to the shadows so they wouldn’t be stopped and made his way out of the room and down the corridor towards the room he was sharing with Belle after the wedding. Belle giggled happily as she held onto Cameron’s hand, she struggled to keep up with him in her heels and now he no longer needed a cane to walk so he was a lot faster than he used to be. Especially when he was a man on a mission!

They made it to their room and Gold pulled the key card from his wallet, trying to open the door was a task in itself because Belle chose that moment to start kissing his neck.

“You keep that up and we'll be doing this out here” he growled as he finally heard the tell-tale beep of the door lock opening. He pushed the handle and they stumbled into the room.

Belle wasted no time in grabbing Cameron’s jacket and pushing it from his shoulders “impatient” he murmured as her fingers pulled his tie free from its knot.

“It won’t be long until someone notices we're gone and then someone, probably Ruby, is going to be banging on that door” Belle pointed out as she popped the buttons of his shirt.

“Good point” he agreed and went to work on the zipper of her dress. He pushed the material from her shoulders and the dress pooled on the floor around her feet “you are exquisite” he was in awe of how beautiful she was.

“Will you still think that when I’m the size of a house?” she blushed under his gaze.

“You could be the size of ten houses and I would still think you were the most beautiful creature in the world” he pushed a lock of her hair behind her ear and then returned his lips to hers. She shoved his now open shirt off his body and that joined her dress on the floor. Belle felt herself being guided backwards and then the backs of her legs hit the end of the bed, she lay back and Cameron pulled away to stand up straight to remove his trousers and then he crawled up her body, only stopping briefly to place a soft kiss on her still flat belly, he whispered something that Belle didn’t catch and she made a mental note to ask him later, although she wouldn’t be mad if he just wanted to keep it between him and their unborn child.

He made his way up her body until he claimed her lips with his again. Belle loved feeling his weight against hers and the evidence of his arousal for her pressing against her core. She wrapped her legs around him pulling him closer.

“Fuck I need you” Gold gasped when he felt her heat through the thin material of his boxers.

“Make love to me” Belle begged. She hooked her fingers into his boxers and began to push the garment over his hips. He sat up on his knees and pushed them off revealing his hard cock to her hungry gaze. Before he returned to her he hooked his fingers around the waistband of her underwear and guided them down her legs, he then lost them amongst the pile of already forgotten clothes. 

He returned his mouth to hers and she wrapped her legs back around his waist pulling him as close as she could, his hand travelled down her body following the now very familiar trail of her curves until he reached the sacred spot between her legs. Her hips bucked when his fingers came into contact with the little bundle of nerves.

“Cameron” she breathed his name “please” 

They didn’t have time for foreplay, as much as they both wanted to take their time.

“Ok sweetheart” he knew what she wanted; they had plenty of time after the wedding to play. He removed his clever fingers and wrapped his palm around his length and positioned himself at her entrance “I guess we don’t have to worry about protection anymore” he chuckled and Belle smiled.

“No I guess we don’t” she agreed. She let out a long moan as he thrust into her slowly. They had always been good at remembering protection but a few weeks prior they had both been out, Gold on Neal’s stag do and Belle on Emma hen do, they had both arrived back at the house a little worse for wear and had gotten a little amorous before falling asleep on each other’s arms. It wasn’t until Belle realised she was late that it had occurred to her that they hadn’t used protection that night. Belle was flabbergasted that it had only taken one night, maybe it had been a few times that night, but still.

“Christ Belle” Cameron groaned “You always feel so good”

“So do you” she breathed “oh Cam” she then moaned as he began to move.

He kept his thrusts slow and shallow, the way she liked it, he buried his face in the crook of her neck and placed soft kisses along her skin. She tightened her legs around him pulling him even closer if that were possible.

“Fuck Belle” he moaned, his hand reached to palm her breast and he took a rosy bud into his mouth and worried it with his teeth gently before releasing.

“Cameron” Belle was getting louder as Golds thrusts became harder and more erratic “yes..... Oh god”

“Come for me sweetheart” Cameron changed his angle slightly, so he was hitting that spot that made Belle see stars. He moved his hand between them and with a few strokes of his clever fingers over her sensitive little bundle she broke.

“Yes! Ah!” Belle screamed and Gold clamped his mouth over hers in a bruising kiss to muffle the noise, he was still thrusting into her as he chased his own release. After Belle had caught her breath she reached up to trail kisses along Cameron’s throat, something she knew he liked and she whispered.

“Come for me Cam, I want to feel you come inside me” 

He groaned long and hard as his whole body tensed, Belles words were his undoing and he came, emptying himself inside of her and giving Belle another short but intense orgasm at the same time.  
Golds body went limp but he tried not to lay all of his weight on Belle, they both breathed heavily for a while, before Cameron finally rolled to the side to lie next to her.

“Wow!” Belle exhaled “that was amazing” 

“Yeah” Cameron agreed wholeheartedly “that was something alright” he looked over at her. Her hair was a mess, her lipstick was smudged and she looked thoroughly ravaged but she couldn’t have looks more beautiful to Gold in that moment. She was carrying his child; they had created a life together. Belle rolled onto her side and put her head on his chest, and draped her arm around his torso.

“Can we just stay here?” she asked and nuzzled into his chest.

He tightened his arms around her and kissed the top of her head “I wish sweetheart, but I don’t think we can miss much more of the wedding” 

“I know” she grumbled.

“But as soon as it’s over we can come straight back here and stay as long as you want” he promised “I will even pay for extra days if you want to stay here for more than the night” 

“That sounds like heaven” she kissed his chest and moved to sit up. She smiled down at her love who was watching her “come on, the sooner we go, the sooner we get back and maybe try out the hot tub”

Gold grinned; he’d forgotten they’d paid extra for the room with the hot tub. He jumped out of the bed, faster than a man his age should be able to, and gathered up his rumpled suit, he watched Belle slide her legs into her dress and shimmy it up over her hips and over her breasts.

“Can you zip me up?” she asked over her shoulder and smirked when she caught him staring. Cameron walked over to her and moved her hair over her shoulder and pulled the zipper up, he placed a soft kiss on her shoulder and she turned to face him “thank you” 

“You’re welcome” he learned forward and kissed her lips gently. Once he had his suit back on and Belle had slipped her feet back into her heels they linked hands and headed back to the party.

“Where have you been?” Belle turned and saw Ruby storming towards them.

“Just talking “

“For a walk” 

The pair answered at the same time.

“You two are rubbish liars” Ruby smirked knowingly.

Gold shrugged and kissed Belles cheek before making his exit, Ruby was Belles friend, she could deal with Ruby’s questions. He wanted to feel bad but he knew Belle wouldn’t hate him for it, and if she was mad then she could punish him later. He smirked at the thought.

“So I’m guessing you told him the news?” Ruby asked when Gold was out of earshot.

“Yes I did” Belle grinned.

“And I’m guessing from that smile that he was extremely happy” Ruby nudged her friend with a wink

“Oh yes” Belles grin widened.

“Naughty Belle” Ruby giggled “come on, let’s find Emma and get drunk” 

Belle raised her eyebrows at her friend.

“Ok Emma and I will get drunk and you can watch” she laughed and pulled Belle towards the bar. 

Gold found Neal and Will stood by the bar and joined them, ordering himself a scotch.

“Where have you been?” Will asked his dad.

“Around” Gold replied vaguely.

“That means he snuck off with Belle somewhere” Neal nudged his younger brother. Gold choked on his drink and his boys laughed loudly and Neal clapped him on the back.

When he caught his breath he looked at his boys, they were men now, with their own lives and he was so proud of them. 

“There’s something I need to tell you both” Gold swallowed nervously.

“What’s up dad, it’s not like you to be nervous” Neal asked.

Gold took a deep breath, it was now or never “Belles pregnant” 

“Yes! Pay up!” Will turned to his older brother. Cameron looked confused between the two men.

“Damn it” Neal dove his hand inside his jacket and pulled out a 20 dollar bill and slapped it into Wills hand. 

“Care to explain” Cameron ordered.

“Sorry pops” Neal mumbled “Will bet me 20 bucks that you and Belle would be expecting a baby before Christmas, I said you’d be married first” 

“Sorry son” Gold chuckled “I'm afraid Will beat you for a change”

“No worries. Congratulations Dad” Neal hugged Cameron.

“Yeah dad, congrats” Will joined in the family hug.

“What did I miss?” Belle appeared next to the three Gold men.

“It seems my sons have been betting on us” Gold untangled himself from Neal and Will and wrapped a protective arm around Belle.

“Oh really” Belle giggled “who won?”

“I did!” Will declared proudly “but seriously congrats on the baby Belle, I can’t wait to meet my younger brother or sister” 

“Really?” Belle was shocked. She had thought out of everyone Will would be the one to have a problem with the baby. 

“Yeah, means I won’t be the youngest anymore” he stated.

“Yeah I get a new sibling to teach bad habits to” Neal cheered “Emma won’t let me with Henry” he pouted.

“Plus side of having two grown up kids” Gold murmured in Belles ear “free babysitters” 

Belle laughed, earning curious glances from Neal and Will. Emma appeared a moment later

“It’s time for our first dance husband” Emma said to Neal. 

The happy couple walked out onto the dance floor as the DJ began to play a slow song, Belle stood with Cameron on the edge of the dance floor watching her best friend with her new husband and a pang of jealousy went through her, Cam caught the fleeting look on her face and knew exactly what was wrong.

“That will be us one day” Gold assured her quietly.

“I can’t wait to be your wife” she told him honestly.

“If I have my way that day won’t be very far away” he muttered so she didn’t hear him. Belle looked up at him when the DJ called for other couples to join the bride and groom on the dance floor. He rolled his eyes with a smile and held his hand out to guide her out onto the floor. He twirled her around and pulled her close and began to sway in time with the music. 

He thought about how he was going to propose, he had already thought about doing it so many times but now she was having his baby he wanted her to be his wife more than anything. 

8 months later

“You are not coming anywhere near me again Cameron Gold!” Belle screamed as another contraction ripped through her body.

“She doesn’t mean it” the doctor chuckled to Cameron who was standing by his now fiancée’s side holding her hand. 

“Don’t tell me what I mean” Belle growled “ow!” she cried and then slumped back against the pillows breathing heavily.

“Breathe sweetheart, it’s nearly over” Cameron wiped her brow with a damp cloth.

“I’m sorry” Belle sobbed “I don’t mean to tell at you” 

“I know” Cameron kissed her forehead “but you can yell, scream or even thump me, I’m not going anywhere” 

“I love you” Belle whimpered as she felt another contraction coming.

“I love you too” he replied and winced as her grip on his hand tightened painfully, her sparkling engagement ring dug into his skin so much that he was regretting buying such a big diamond. He had finally proposed to Belle not long after Neal’s wedding. It was after their first scan, and he had kept it simple, he cooked them a meal at their home and then got down on one knee. She had said yes immediately but they had agreed to marry after the baby was born.

Twenty minutes later, Belle slumped back against the pillows again as the piercing cries of their new born filled the room.

“Congratulations Miss French, Mr Gold” the doctor beamed and placed the baby on Belles chest “It’s a boy” 

“A boy?” Belle couldn’t stop the tears trickling down her cheeks “It’s a boy Cameron” she smiled up at Gold whose own eyes were filled with tears.

“He’s beautiful” Gold was in awe “thank you so much Belle” 

“Are we still agreed on his name?” she looked at their little boy again to see if the name fit.

“I think it’s a perfect name” he agreed.

“Our Gideon” she stroked a finger down Gideon’s cheek.

Cameron moved to sit on the edge of the bed and wrapped his arm around Belle and she snuggled into him. He couldn’t believe how much had happened in just a little over a year, before Belle had come knocking on his door with Neal that night he had been miserable and lonely, not that he would ever have admitted that to anyone. Although they hadn’t had the best start to their relationship and he knows that they probably shouldn’t have fallen in love, he knows now, sat in the hospital room with Belle and their new born baby boy, Gideon, it had been worth the trouble.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well that's it! Thank you to everyone that took the time to read, kudos and comment. This was my first story so I hope that you enjoyed it and that I didn't do too bad of a job lol! I have a new story started so hope to see you again soon x


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